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Washington County 

NEW YORK 

ITS HISTORY TO THE CLOSE 

OF THE 

NINETEENTH CENTURY 

HISTORIAN AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 
WILLIAM L. STONE 

AL'TIKIK OF THE "I. IFF, AND TIMES OF SIR WIl.l.lAM JOHNSON, liAKT," " BUKCJOYNE'S 

CAMI'AICN AND S'l". I.EC^KK's EX I'EDmoN, " " MIEFIARV JOUKNAI.S 

ol' ^^\JoK-l;KNEKAL KU'.DESEL," \-C. , *.-C., &C. 



ASSOCIATE EDITOR , , 
HON. A. DALLAS WAlT 



" For^-ottL'ii gx-nerations li\-e again ; 

Assume the bodily shapes they wore of old 

Beyond the Flood." — Kirke Winii:. 



ITHFISIIED HY 

THE NEW YORK HISTORY CO. 
igoi. 






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PREFACE. 



Washing-ton County, N. Y., may justly be considered the classic 
ground of America. On her soil were fought many of the battles of 
" William and Mary's War," " Queen Anne's War," " The Old French 
War," "The French War" and the "Revolutionary War." And 
Washington^County deserves from the historian particular recogni- 
tion for the further reason that within her borders occurred two 
events which determined for two centuries the policies of France and 
Great Britain 

The first of these was the skirmish between Le Sieur de Champlain 
in 1609, when, at the head of the Algonquins and Hurons, he defeated 
the Iroquois and, by this victory, laid the foundation of the implaca- 
ble hatred of the Iroquois (the "Six Nations") against the French, 
which prevented the " Six Nations" from espousing the French cause 
against that of the English. This action of the Iroquois undoubtedly 
led to the final overthrow of the French power in America. Indeed, 
had it not been for Champlain's victory, it is perhaps not too much 
to say, that the United States would now be a French nation. 

The second of these events to which reference has been made 
belongs to the War of the American Revolution. 

The elaborate preparation which resulted in sending fortli the 
finest and best equipped army that had ever left the shores of Eng- 
land; the arrogant proclamations that heralded its approach; the suc- 
cessful advance through Washington County; the terror inspired by 
its savage allies; the early consternation and discomfiture of the 
Colonists; the subsequent rally of desperation; the indecisive conflict 
of September 17, 1777 ; the disastrous defeat of the Briton October 7 — 
all culminated at Schuylerville in the capitulation of the entire British 
army and the hcjsannas of the nation at its glorious deliverance. This 
event secured for us the French alliance and lifted the cloud of moral 
and financial gloom that had settled upon the hearts of the people, 
dampening the hopes of the leaders of the Revolution and wringing 
despairing words even from the hopeful Washington. From that 
auspicious day belief in the ultimate triumph of American Lil)erty 



iv PREFACE. 

never abandoned the nation until it was realized and sealed four years 
later, almost to a day, in the final surrender at Yorktown. 

But, if it is said that this culmination took place on the soil of Sara- 
toga County, it should ever be kept in mind that the surrender of the 
British army w^as due chiefly, if indeed not entirely, to the erection 
of Colonel Fellows' batteries at the mouth of the Battenkill, nearly 
opposite the scene of the surrender and in Washington County. In 
fact, had it not been for those batteries, thus enfilading and cutting 
off all chance of the retreat of the British Army, Burgoyne would 
undoubtedly have escaped with his army into Canada and thus the 
moral effects of his two previous defeats would have beefl completely 
neutralized in all the cabinets of Europe. 

The publishers of this history desired that full justice should be 
given to the descendants of those who were participants in these 
stirring events; and while there have been previously written a 
history of the county and detached narratives of different scenes 
enacted within her borders, yet I think the publishers may justly 
claim the present history to be a presentation of much new matter 
connected with Washington County, which has never before made 
its appearance, as well as a succinct, clear and accurate review of the 
entire histor}' of the county to the close of the nineteenth century. 

Aside, moreover, from these military occurrences, the county is 
deserving of great credit, not only for the introduction of flax and 
industries depending upon its culture, but for causing her sister coun- 
ties to eifiulate her efforts by which Northern New York, especially, 
has attained a proud name among manufacturers and producers gen- 
erally, throughout the United States. 

One word more: In the preparation of this History — aside from my 
own works, and citations from some fortv other authorities, and ex- 
clusive of several original MS. Journals, now for the first time made 
public — I desire to acknowledge my indebtedness to the writings of 
Humphrey, Johnson and Palmer, and my old and personal friends, 
the late B. C. Butler, N. B. Sylvester, Francis Parkman, Dr. Asa 
Fitch, Prof. John Fiske and Dr. A. W. Holden. I also desire to 
acknowledge the valuable assistance of Hon. A. Dallas Wait, my 
associate, as well as that of Mr. Franklin B. Dowd, of Saratoga 
Springs, from whose graceful pen have emanated some of the personal 
sketches and town histories contained in the present volume. 

Mt. Vernon, N. Y., Sept. i, 1901. Wii.i.ia.m L. Stone. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 



Erection of Charlotte County — Chani;es in Area and Boundaries — Name 
Changed to Washington County — Geography — Mountain Ranges — Lakes 
and Watercourses — Geology — Agricultural Products, Population, Land 
Grants and Titles — Early Physical Characteristics — Historical Treatment i-i : 

CHAPTER II. 

Saratoga Patent — Woods and Game of Washington County— Champlain's Ex- 
pedition ii-iS 

CHAPTER III. 

William and ;\Liry's War. 1 681-1697 — Queen Anne's War, 1702-17 13— The Old 
French and Indian War, 1744-174S — Captain John Schuyler's Journal, 
i7<)o iS-37 

CHAPTER IV. 

Kalm's Journey Through What is now Washington County in 1749 and the 

Beginnings of Settlements in Its Territory 37-45 

■ CHAPTER V. 

The French War, 1 754-1 763— Sketch of Fort Edward — Visits to It of Distin- 
guished Travelers 45-57 

CHAPTER VI. 

The French War Continued — Major General Johnson's Campaign Against, and 
His Defeat of Baron Dieskau — The Moral and Physical Results of His 
\'ictory 57-74 

CHAPTER VII. 

Raids of R(»gers, Stark and Putnam — Attack of the French upon I'ort William 

Henrv — Defeat of the Enemy and Their Retreat 74-Si 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

The French War Continued — Montcalm's Capture of Fort William Henry and 
the Subsequent Massacre — Attack by the Ottawas on Fort Edward Easily 
Repulsed by Putnam's Rans.;"ers ■ Si-92 

CHAPTER IX. 

The French War Continued — Rogers Surprised — Moonlight Fight at "Put's 
Rock " near Whitehall — Defeat of General Abercrombie — Duncan Camp- 
bell's (ihost — The Conquest of Canada by Woltf and Amherst 92-110 

CHAPTER X. 

Close of the French War — Putnam Captured and a Prisoner in Canada — The 
Ouackenboss Adventure near Sandy Hill — Lessons Derived from the 
W^ar 110-121 

CHAPTER XI. 

Early Settlements of the Coimty — First Church Erected in Salem — The (rreat 
New Hampshire Grant Controversy — Prominent Settlers — Judge William 
Duer, Colonel Skene, etc. — First Court Held at Fort Edward 121-137 

CHAPTER XII. 

The Peace of 1763 Brings Increased Prosperity to Washington County — Gen- 
eral Thrift of the People Disturbed by Rumors of War Between the Col- 
onies and the Mother Country — The Inhabitants of the County Divided in 
Their Allegiance — Ethan Allen's Attack on, and the Capture of Ticon- 
deroga — Seizure and Imprisonment of Cohmel Skene — Formation of W'ar 
Committees — Failure of General Montgomery's Expedition and His Death 
Before the Walls of Quebec — Death from Small Pox of General Thomas — 
Washington's Views Regarding the Recruiting for the Continental Army — 
Carleton's Naval Victory on Lake Champlain — Extracts from Captain Nor- 
ton's " Or-derly Book" — Position of the People of Washington County at 
this Crisis 137-154 

CHAPTER XIII. 

The Settlers of Washington County Begin to Realize the vSerious State of 
Affairs— Reports of the Invasiim of the British Army Fully Confirmed — 
Advance of Burgoyne and the Capture of Fort Ticonderoga and Retreat of 
St. Clair — Fermoy's Treachery— Battle of Hubbardtown — Burgoyne Pur- 
sues the Americans Through Wood Creek and Destroys Their Flotilla — 
Battle of ]"ort x\nne— Anecdotes Connected witli that Engagement 154-176 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XIV. 



Events Which FoUowed Close on the Battle of Fort Anne — Schuyler Delays 
the March of Burgoyne — Indian Atrocities — Murder of the Alltn Fam- 
ily 176-185 

CHAPTER XV. 

The Jane McCrea Tragedy— The Last Days of Her Lover, David Jones; His 
Personal Appearance Shortly Before His Death — Bravery of Mrs. General 
Schuyler — Narrow Escape of General Schuyler from an Indian Assassin — 
Effect of these Cruelties in Arousing Popular Wrath 185-211 

CHAPTER XVI. 

Schuyler Delays the March of Burgoyne — The Battle of Bennington and Its 
Direct Results in the Defeat of Burgoyne— Comments on It— Sergeant 
Lamb's Journal of His Trip Through the Wilderness from Fort Miller to 
Ticonderoga— Anecdotes and Incidents AVhile Burgoyne was at Fort Miller 
— Consternation Among the People of Washington County upon the Ap- 
proach of the British Army: 211-231 

CHAPTER XVII. 

Advance of Burgoyne- Battle of the 19th of September, 1777-^ Anecdotes^ etc. 
—Action of October 7th- Bravery of Arnold— The Taking of the Great 
Redoubt— Death of Colonel Breymann— Death and Burial of General 
Eraser 231-253 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

Burgoyne's Army Begins Retreat— Heights of Saratoga Occupied, Cutting off 
Hopes of Escape— Lady Acland's Flight to the American Camp- Burgoyne's 
Surrender— Incidents Connected Therewith— Madame Riedesel's Estimate 
of General Schuyler - Character of Burgoyne and Gates Compared— 
General Results of the Surrender 253-279 



CHAPTER XIX. 

Militia Disbanded -Sad Plight of the Whigs— A Block House Built at Salem — 
Court Martial Held on Those Lukewaim to the Colonies— The Vermont 
Controversy— Governor Clintim's Connection Therewith -The New Hamp- 
shire Grants -Clinton's Failure-End of Controversy— Name of Charlotte 
County Changed to Washington— Boundaries of County Settled 279-299 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XX. 



Settlers Resume Regular Vocations -County Seat Changed from Ft)rt Edward 
to Sandy Hill -Extracts from President Dwight's Journal of His Tours 
Through Washington County 300-32: 



CHAPTER XXI. 

War of 1812-15 -Washington County's General Industries EiTected Thereby — 
The News of Peace Heralded with Joy -President Wayland's and " Peter 
Parley's" Account of It — Washington County's Pail in Mexican War — 
The Civil War — Sketches of the Diflterent Regiments and Companies 
Enlisted in the County; Names of the Oflficers and Those Who Died— The 
Champlain Canal — Its Effect uj^on the Prosperity of the County — Railroad 
to Whitehall in 1846 325-350 



CHAPTER XXII. 
> 
The Spanish American War — Washington County's Participation Therein — 
Enlistments of Companies I. K and M — Assigned to the Second New York 
Provisional Regiment —Roster of these Companies — Movements of the 
Regiment 350-358 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Early Sketches and Biographies — Peter Carver's Journal — General Israel Put- 
nam — (ieneral Philip Schuyler — Colonel John Williams 358-372 

CHAPTER XXIV 

County Civil and Political Lists 372-377 

CHAPTER XXV. 
Gazetteer of Towms 377-4S4 

CHAPTER XXVI. 
Newspapers of the Count}' 4S5-505 

CHAPTER XXVII. 
The Bench and Bar 506-570 



CONTENTS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 



PART 



Allen, Cornelius L., 562 

Allen, Hon. Cornelius Lansing, 512 

Arnold, Hon. A. D., s68 

Baker, F. I., 565 

Bartholomew, Alanson Douglas, 550 

Bascom, Robert O., 566 

Betts, Royal C, 563 

Blanchard. Hon A I., 508 

Blair, Bernard, 508 

Boies, David A., 509 

Boies, Joseph, 510 

Boyd, Hon. John H., 569 

Bratt, Frederick A., 559 

Burby, Augustus Alonzo, 561 

Burgoyne, Gen., 273 

Campbell, Maj. Duncan, 103 

Champlain, Samuel de, 13 

Clark, Orville, 522 

Clark, Rev. Dr. Thomas, 387 

Crary, Hon. Charles, 509 

Davis, Charles G., 549 

Davis, Oscar F., 52S 

Davis. R. R., 564 

Dennis, Capt. (^tis Alonzo, 546 

Derby, Archibald S., 567 

Doig, Robert, 521 

]>uer, Judge William, 131 

Dwj'er, Maj. John, 496 

Evarts, Silas E., 554 

Fairchild, Hon, Marinus, 522 

Eraser, Hon. Lonson, 527 

Gates, Gen., 274 

(Tibbs, Leonard, 512 

Gibson, Henry, 512 . 

Gibson H<m James 516 

Gibson, Jamfes. Jr., 555 

(iilroy, John, 529 

Higlev. Brodie G,, 548 

Hiil, Alfred G.. 359 

Hopkins, James C. 521 

Hughes, Charles, 521 

Hull, Edgar, 539 

Ingalls, lion. Charles R.. 515 

Ingalls, Charles Fryer. 514 

Ingalsbe, (rlenville Mellen, 533 

Jones, David, 194 



536 

51 
522 

537 



Law, Robert R,, 555 

Lillie, Hon. Thomas A. 

Lydius, Col., 44 

Lyman, Gen. Phineas. 

Martindale, Henry C. 

McCormick, Joseph B., 

McCrea, Jane, 186 

Milliman, N B.. 522 

Northup, Henry B., 522 

Northup, Hon. Lyman Hall, 523 

Norton, Eliot Bliven, 542 

Paris, Hon. U. G., 510 

Paris, Hon. Charles R., 530 

Parry, John, 564 

Potter, Hon. Joseph, 523 

Potter, J. San ford, 567 

Pratt, A. v., 570 

Pratt, Charles (X, 538 

Putnam, Gen, Israel, 362 

Reynolds, Milo C , 501 

Richard, A. N.. 564 

Robertson, Abner, 569 

Robinson, Hon. Willai-d, 55S 

Rogers, Gen. James C 565 

Rogers, Randolph, 543 

Rogers, Major Robert, 51 

Russell, Col. Solomon W., 

Savage, Hon. John, 508 

Sawyer, W. L.. 560 

Schuyler. Gen, Philip. 365 

Scott. George, 556 

Seeley, Jvu-den E, 5O1 

Skene, Major Philip, 177 

Sullivan, D. J., 563 

Van Schaick,"Alvar>l()Goodenough, 505 

Van Wormer. Rodnev, 5"i5 

Wait, Hem. A, Dallas, 552 

Wait, Hon, Luther, 517 

Westfall, Hon, Daniel M., 540 

Weston, Hon. Roswell, 521 

Whitman, Hon. J. M., 547 

Willard, Hon, John. 513 

Williams, Gen. (Dr.) John, 368 

Wilson, David, 521 

Young, William E,, 551 



562 



CONTENTS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 



PART 1 I 



Adams, Martin II., 4() 
Ackley, J. Albert, 47 
Agan, John L., 47 
Allen, Aaron B., 211 
Allen, Charles L., 214 
Allen, Hiram, 3 
Allen, Loren, 45 
Ambler, Silas B., 208 
Bailey. Leander E.. 55 
Baker, Col. Eugene M., 287 
Baker, J. Dewayne, 285 
Baker, Theodore P., 286 
Banker,. S. J., M. D., 207 
Barber, Lewis T., 218 
Barkley, A. C, 50 
Barnet't, J. M., 209 
Barrett, John, 56 
Bascom, Beniamin H., 56 
Bassett, S. W., 212 
Becker, Henry W., 52 
Berry, Siimnel. 211 
Bil)hy, Leonard, 204 
Borden. Elias H., 213 
Borden, Ru.ssell A., 53 
Bowtell. Charles W., 49 
Boyd, William J., 55 
Bragg, Edwin L., 306 
Brayton, John, 216 
Brett, Robert H., 57 
Bristol, W. Irving, 215 
Britton, Reuben, Jr., 213 
Broughton. Aaron C, 211 
Broughton, Charles H.. 207 
Brown, C. N., 57 
Brown, James R., 206 
Brown, Joseph, 4S 
Brown, "Joseph W., 51 
Brown, Michael, 213 
Brown, Raymond E., 214 
Brownell, Dennis, 52 
Buckley, I^^anklin, 53 
Bump, A. D., 290 
Burch, Farsimus, 50 
Burleigh, Hon. Henry (i., 201 
Burton, Isaac Addison, 54 
Campbell, Brown, 223 
Campbell, John Woods, 63 



Carr, Byron A., 61 

Carr, vS. W., 223 

Carrington, Col. Luke H., 229 

Cary, Charles, 267 

Chamberlin, Martin H., 72 

Chapman, John W., 62 

Chase, Andrew J., 220 

Cheesman, James H., 60 

Clark, J. C, 222 

Clements, H. C, 232 

demons, Hon. George L., 4 

Coleman, Prof. W. s", 286 

Collamer, Edward C, 63 

Collin, J. R., 281 

Conaty, Robert, 226 

Conklin, E. H., 231 

Cook, E. W., 217 

Copeland, Clarence, 233 

Cotton, Willard H., D. D. S., 219 

Coulter, Henry, 233 

Cramer, C. A., 226 

Cronkhite, Leonard W., 59 

Cross, Theodore D., 224 

Crozier, Joseph P., 218 

Cunningham, John J., 58 

Cull, G. D., 22S 

Culver, George B., 221 

Cushing, Michael E., 62 

Daly, Patrick B., 271 

Davis, Clayton N., 69 

Davis, Fred A., 70 

Davies. Robert C, M I) , 64 

Day, M. T. C, 234 

Dean, Charles W., 23^ 

Dean, C. P., 232 

DeGolyer, Charles C, 88 

Derby, Hon. John H., 6 

Deuel, George H., 67 

Devine, George S., 70 

r^evine, Seth, 232 

Dickinson, Salmon, 68 

Donahue. Robert, 68 

Donehue, Michael C, 67 

Doren, Charles A., 65 

Dougan, Mrs. Adelia, 64 

Dunsmore, Charles L., 288 

Dunsmore, Da\-id. 71 



contp:nts. 



1 )ui rin, (i. (iordon. 234 

Kaston, D. C, 23() 

l^.dgerton, John, 72 

I'xhvards, John, 268 

Farwell, Fonrose, S 

1-Vrris, George A., 237 

Ferris, James M., 74 

Finch, Evander M., 74 

FMnch, Samuel L., 237 

F'itch, Sherman W., 73 

F'ort Edward Brewing Co., 205 

I'oster, Jesse D., 72 

I'rake, Charles, 236 

I'^raser, Walter, 239 

Fullerton, Charles II., 73 

(kdbreath, Walter, 238 

(Tuvette, Horace H., 81 

(ietten, Albert C, 79 

Gibbs, Alfred C, 77 

Gibson, Jesse, 293 

Gifford, (leorge, 82 

(rilbert. Mrs. 'H, C, 84 

(lilchrist, Leander, 80 

(iiUis. James G., 83 

(lillis, James K., 81 

(Tiines, A. F., 241 

(ioodman, Carmi, So 

(roodman, Hon. James E., 75 

(jraham. John, 239 

(rrav. Adj. Emmett J., 9 

Gray, Henry, M. D.. 89 

(xraiilich, John Philip, 83 

Griffith, Rev. M. J., L L. D., 273 

(rnswold, (Justavus A., 84 

(rriswold, Samuel K., 87 

Hall, Duane L., 97 

Harding, Charles W., 242 

Harlow, S. P., 244 

Harris, Zadock, 288 

Haskins, Delbert R., 302 

Hatch, (Jeorge L., 96 

Hatch, Leroy T., 250 

Hawley, L. Jane, 19 

Hendrick, Edward Delwin, 90 

Henry, Chris., 249 

Henrv, George, 244 

Hewitt, Fred. William, 282 

Hewitt, Mrs. M. H., 240 

Hibbard Brothers, 289 

Higley, Clifford W., 246 

Higley, Capt. Julius-; H., 303 

Hilfinger Brothers,' 97 

Hill, Frank A., 89 

Hill, Frederick E., 18 

Hill, Capt. James, 243 

Hitchcock, W. L., 269 

Hobbie, Hon. William R., 297 

Holley, (jeorge. 298 

Hollister, Clarissa Burch, 210 



Horstield, Rev. F. H. T., 250 
Hotel Cunningham, 301 
Howland, Amasa, 13 
Howland, Lansing M., 92 
Hovsradt, William H., 305 
Hubbard, M. D., 247 
Hubbell, Silas S., 91 
Hughes, A. T., 246 
Hughes, Gen. William H., 11 
Huppuch, Winfield A., 95 
Hurd, Daniel P., 99 
Hunt, J. Legus, 253 
Hyatt, Louis, 99 
Hvde, Capt. Hiram, m 
In'held, CliPton L., M.'LX, 100 
Ingalls, George F., 86 
Ingalsbe, Milo, 39 
Ingalsbe, M. D., loi 
Ingraham, Frederick, 290 
Ives, F. O., 253 
Jakeway, Hon. Pelatiah, loi 

[ohnson, (reorge P., loi 

Joy. M. F., 103 

Keating, James 1)., 2^2 

Kellogg. Rev. Charles D., D. D., 104 

Key worth, William H., 106 

Kincaid, J. H., 251 

King, Edwin Morton, 'SI. D., 296 

King, David Har\'ey, 295 

King, James P., 103 

King, Rev. Joseph E,, D. D., 283 

Kinney, E. C, 103 

Larmon, John, 254 

Laraway, Nelson D., 113 

Lansing, Arthur K., 11 1 

Law, Robert R.,133 

Lawton, Joseph A., 108 

Lawton, Willard, 107 

Lemm, F^lmer I).. 11 1 

Liddle. Michael W., 109 

Liddle, Emeline, 112 

Linendol, Robert A., M. D., 106 

Loomis, Amos, 109 

Lovejov, Henrv Hall, no 

Madison, William B., M. D.. 124 

Main, John, 21 

Manvifle, John J., 121 

Marshall, George L., 123 

Martin, Homer B., 123 

^Martine, Hon. (Godfrey R., M. D., 299 

Mason, C. L., 256 

Maxwell, George S., 121 

McCartv, John, 120 

.McCarty, Rev. Michael P., 126 

.McCov, James W., 306 

.McCov, Robert E., 305 

McDowell, Robert, 122 

McEachron, Robert C, 1 19 

McEachron, Rev. Willard S., 124 



Xll 



CONTENTS. 



McFarland, C. H., 260 

McFarland, George H., 130 

McFarland, William, 1T7 

]\IcGoech, Alexander, 127 

McHugh, Martin, 120 

McKereher, Harvey, 118 

McLoughlin, C. H., 258 

McLoghiin, Rev. Thomas M., 116 

McMiflan, Joseph, M. D., 127 

McMurray, George, 258 

AIcNaughton, Fred, 204 

Meiklejohn, Gordon W., 256 

Melick; William B., M. l).] 129 

Mellon, Charles, 125 

Meyer, Aubrey Edgerton, 291 

Middleworth, Henry V.. 22 

?kIiddleworth, Warren H., 128 

Miller; John J., 119 

Mills, Charles Edwin, 305 

Jilitchell, Sardis, 125 

Mock, James, riS 

Monroe, Dr. Isaac Thomitson, up 

Montgomery, R. C, 259 

Moon, E. H., 257 

Moon, Patrick, 263 

Moor, William, 121 

Morgan, Hon. John J., 114 

Mott, O. H., M. D., 129 

Mott, Capt. S. W., 261 

Nelson, Fred R., 262 

Newcomb, Edward P., 131 

Nichols, G. K., 285 

Noble, A. R., 2S1 

Northup, Charles S., 22 

Northup, H. Davis, 25 

Northup, James M., 132 

Northup, Hon. James M., 23 

.Norton, Charles A,, 133 

Norton, Nelson, 264 

(batman, Lewis R., M. D., 136 

Oatman, Orlin E., 138 

O'Brien, Rev. J. J., 227 

O'Donnell, Thomas, 243 

O Neil, John,' 137 

Owen's, Owen W., Sons, 135 

Pahner, E. H., 263 

Parant, Albert E., 145 

Parrish, Hiram H., 146 

Patterson, Thomas A., 139 

Peabody, Willard L., 144 

Pepper, John Herman, 149 

Petteys, Fred, 143 

Philo, Lewis N., 145 

Pickett, M., 147 

Piser, Leonard Church, 140 

Potter, Edgar L., 139 

Potter, John D., 138 

Potter, Joseph H., 140 

I'otter, Townsend J., 143 



Pratt, Edwin C, 142 
Pratt, John Lovejoy, 147 
Oua, Henry A., 182' 
Randies, Robert, 152 
Rathbun, C. A., 276 
Rathbun, Lyman, 149 
Ray, Edwin P., 306 
Ray, Rodnej' T., 212 
Reynolds, Rev. J. A., D. D., 152 
Reynolds, William Pitt, 151 
Reil, John, 153 
Rhodes, Horace. 155 
Rice. Jerome Bonaparte, 27 
Richards. Eber. 154 
Richter. Franz E.. 262 
Rogers. George E., 157 
Rogers, Horace L.. 150 
Rogers. Lieut. H. N., 272 
Rogers, John S.. 156 
Root, Clarence M., 264 
Root, Henry .S. . 26 
Rutledge, John E.. 153 
Ryon, Frank C, 157 
Safford, Charles H., 161 
Safford Joseph T., 164 
Sanders. George H.. 166 
Saunders. William A.. 20=; 
Sawyer. Rev. Everett R., I). D.. 280 
Shaw. Oringe. 169 
vSheldon. Hon. O. W., 30 
Shipman. Hiram. 32 
Sisson. Frank Albert, 170 
Skelly, John 269 
Sleight, David. 171 
Small, James, 266 
Smalley. Alphonzo D., 171 
Smith, Benjamin. 274 
Smith, Charles C, 35 
Smith, C. Edward. 165 
Smith. DeWitt Clinton. 162 
vSmith. Marcellus S., 170 
Snell, Lewis G.. 160 
V Snyder. E. H., 270 
Sonn. Michael. 163 
Spallholz. Henry, 166 
.Sprague. W. L.. 159 
Steele, Douglas 168 
Stevens, Gilbert H., 160 
Stevens. Martin H., 167 
Stevenson, Gilbert J., 159 
Stevenson. Hon. Thomas. 41 
Stickney. Charles H., 305 
Stone. Charles. 27S 
Stone, Joseph B., 2()2 
Stoughton. Timothy F., 15S 
Sullivan. John. 168 
Taylor, Albert G.. 172 
Taylor. J. B.. 173 
Tefft, Miss Frances A., 176 



CONTENTS. 



Tefft. M. C, 276 

Temple, Edwin B.. 176 

Temple, Luther Roswell. 177 

Teiiney, Willis Ashton, M. I)., 178 

Thompson. Henry. 174 

Tidmarsh. Hem y L-. i<)7 

'IMniTue, Charles E., 270 

'i'inkev. Daniel 174 

Triple'r. William Connell, D. D. S., 174 

Turner, (ieorye. 175 

\'alentine. I) L . kj^ 

\'andewerker, H W . M. D., 185 

Van Wormer. Francis ^l.. 4:5 

Van Wormer Family, 179 
Vaughan. Albert C , 1S3 

Vaug-hn. Charles A., 181 

Wakeman Abram. 199 

Walker. Edgar P.. 190 

Walker. Harlan A., 192 

Wall Edward, 184 

Walsh. Arthur. 294 

Ward Benjamin L.. 293 

Warner, Walter A., 189 



Warnock, Alexander. 193 
Warren, Roswell Ethan, 1(^4 
Watkins R H., 271 
Watson. William Grant, 1S7 
Webb, George J.. 296 
Weinberg. Seigmund. 27^ 
Whiteside. Albert, 188 
Wicks. Lemuel E.. 187 
Wilbur. George H.. 192 
Willett. John'R .191 
Williams, Ellis, 265 
Williams. Gen. John. 302 
Williams. John G., 196 
Williams. Valentine. 193 
Williamson, Charles W, , 186 
Winegar. L G.. 191 
Wisely. Harry P., D. D S.. 194 
Witherbee. Robins Miller, 36 
Wolfe. Levi, 190 
Woodruff R. B . 268 
Yates, Rev. Jeremiah F., 19S 
Yout, George. 294 



PORTRAITS. 



^ Allen, Hiram facing 3 part H 

^'^lemons. Hon. George L . facing 4 part H 
^Derby. John H ... facing 6 part H 

■ Farwell, Penrose facing 8 part H 

"^ (iray. Emmett J facing 10 part H 

Hill, Frederick E facing 536 part I 

■ Hawley, David facing 19 part H 

~'Hull, Edgar facing 536 part I 

-1 Hughes, Gen. Wm. H. .facing 11 part H 

■^Howland, Amasa facing 13 part H 

'^ Howland. Lansing M. .facing 92 part H 

A Hyde. Hiram facing is part H 

--^Ingalls. Hon Chas R. .facing 515 part I 

-" Ingalsbe, Grenville M .facing 532 part I 
■^ Ingalsbe, Milo facing 39 part H 

VLillie. Hon. Thomas A. facing 536 part I 

V Martine, J. R., M. D. facing 299 part H 
^Main. John facing 21 part H 

Y M iddleworth, H. V. . .facing 128 part H 



' Northup, Charles S. . . facing 22 part U 

- Northup. H. Davis. . . facing 25 part H 

- Northup. Hon James M . facing 23 part H 
^' Paris Hon. Charles R. .facing 530 part I 

Paris. Hon. U. G facing 510 part 1 

- Potter, Hon. Joseph . . . facing 573 part I 

Rice, Jerome B facing 27 part H 

-; Rogers. Randolph .. .facing 543 part I 

' Root, Henry S facing 458 part I 

-Sheldon. Hon (). W. .. facing 30 part H 

Shipraan. Hiram facing 32 part H 

Smith, C C facing 35 part H 

^^' Stevenson. Thomas . . . facing 41 part U 
■ ;■ Stone. Charles facing 278 part H 

Van Wormer. Francis facing 43 part II 

; Van Wormer. Rodney . . facing 536 pari I 

" Wait. Hon. A. Dallas, .facing 552 part I 

Williams, Valentine, .facing 193 part II 

Witherbee, RoUin M. . facing 36 part II 



THE COUNTY DIVIDED. 3 

On the 7th of March, 1788, the war of the Revolution having- been 
concluded, the independence of the American colonies recognized, and 
the government of the State of New York well established, the legis- 
lature passed an act dividing the State into sixteen counties. The ter- 
ritory included in the boundaries of Washington county was divided 
into two parts by a line " beginning at the most northerly point of the 
rock commonly called Rogers' Rock, situate on the west side of Lake 
George, and thence due west to the county of Montgomery, and' run- 
ning also from the said rock due east to the west bounds of the county 
of Gloucester. " That part of the county lying north of this line was, 
by the act, erected into a county to be called the county of Clinton, and 
that part south of it, into a county to be called by its former name, the 
county of Washington. It was further provided that, until the first 
State census, the supervisors of Clinton and Washington counties should 
meet together at Salem and canvass the votes cast in both counties. At 
the same session an act was passed dividing Washington county into 
nine towns: Afgyle, Salem, Hebron, Granville, Hampton, Whitehall, 
Kingsbury, Westfield and Queensbury. 

On the 7th of February, 1791, an act was passed in which it was re- 
cited that the census of the electors and inhabitants of the State, lately 
taken, showed that alterations in some of the districts and counties were 
necessary; and it was accordingly enacted, among other things, that the 
towns of Cambridge and Easton, in the county of Albany, be annexed 
to, and thereafter considered as part of, the county of Washington. 

It is to be observed that the boundaries of Charlotte county as estab- 
lished in 1772, included a great part of the present State of Vermont, 
and the county of Washington continued to include part of the same 
territory until the 7th of October, 1790, when the State of New York 
relinquished its rights to it in order that it might be erected into a new 
State. This territory, then included in what was known as the New 
Hampshire grants, early became a bone of bitter contention between 
the provincial government of New Hampshire on the one hand and 
that of New York on the other. As the tide of emigration began to 
flow toward the fertile valleys above Albany, between the Connecticut 
river and the valley of the Hudson and Lake Champlain, the Governor 
of New Hampshire made grants of lands within these borders, claim- 
ing the territory under the New Hampshire charter. The government 
of New York sharply opposed this claim and, in turn, claimed the ter- 
ritory under the grants to the Duke of York. Upon an appeal to the 



4 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

Crown the claim of New York was upheld by an order of the King in 
council on the 20th day of July, 1764, and the authority of the govern- 
ment of New York was declared to extend to the Connecticut river. 
The latter government, though it seems to have had a due regard for 
those who had actually settled upon and improved lands under the New 
Hampshire grants, in attempting to enforce its rights and authority in 
the disputed territory, encountered an organized resistance and precipi- 
tated a conflict with the New Hampshire claimants and settlers that 
was only suspended by the greater struggle of the Revolution. During 
the Revolution the settlers in Vermont developed a political importance 
and demanded admission to the confederation as an independent State, 
which was denied on account of the opposition of New York. A second 
application led to bitter feelings and apprehensions among the confed- 
erated States that Vermont might be led to declare allegiance to Great 
Britian. Finally, in 1790, New York offered to relinquish the disputed 
territory upon terms that were accepted and, on the seventh of October, 
1790, the cession was made and Vermont was admitted into the Union 
March 4, 1791. By this act Washington county was deprived of a great 
part of the territory originally given to it, and a considerable sacrifice 
was required of those occupying under grants within its boundaries, 
made by the government of New York. The sum of thirty thousand 
dollars was paid to the State for the lands thus ceded, and this sum was 
distributed among those to whom it had made grants that were thus 
rendered worthless. It is said that, for this comparatively insignificant 
sum, "lands of upwards of a million of dollars in value, were wrested 
from their owners without their consent and became the property of 
the State of Vermont * * * about four cents and nine mills per 
acre were paid them for lands, in some instances, worth as many dol- 
lars." 

Finally, in 18 13, by an act of the legislature of the State of New 
York, all that part of Washington county lying west of a line begin- 
ning at the southeast corner of the town of Queensbury, and running 
thence north along the east line of that town to Lake George and thence 
northerly along the west line of the towns of Fort Ann and Putnam to 
the south line of Essex county, was erected into a separate county by 
the name of Warren. 

The boundaries of Washington county as thus established in 1813, 
have remained unchanged and no further additions to, or subtractions 
from its territory, have since been made. 



ITS BOUNDARIES. 5 

Washington county extends from 42° 55' to 43° 48' north latitude, and 
from 30° 18' to 30° 42' longitude east of the city of Washington. It is 
bounded northerly by the county of Essex, easterly by the State of Ver- 
mont, southerly by the county of Rensselaer, and westerly by the coun- 
ties of Saratoga and Warren. Its extreme length is about sixty miles 
and its width less than twenty miles. Its area is about 807 square miles, 
or 516,500 acres. The northern part of the county extends into the 
Adirondack mountain system, being traversed by the Palmertown range, 
the highest peak of which, Black Mountain, on the eastern shore of Lake 
George, attains an altitude of 2878 feet. The southern part of the 
county is also occupied by ridges of mountains or high hills of different 
character from those in the northern part, and separated from them by 
the remarkable depression which extends southerly from the southern 
extremity of Lake Champlain to the Hudson River valley, of which it 
is the northerly extension. 

The mountains of the southern part of the county are subdivided into 
three principal ranges of the same general character. The most east- 
erly of these ranges is a northerly continuation of the Taghkanic 
Range of Rensselaer county. The next range is sometimes described 
as a continuation of the Petersborough Mountains of Rensselaer, and 
extends northerly to Salem,, where it spreads out like a fan between 
the streams. The third range, known as the Bald Mountain Range, 
extends from the southwesterly edge of the county northerly and east- 
erly to the easterly part of the town of Whitehall. The declivities of 
these ranges are usually steep and, except where broken by ledges, are 
arable to their summits. They gradually rise toward the east, reaching 
their culminating point near the eastern border of the county. The 
highest summits are 1000 to 1200 feet above tide, though Willard's 
Mountain has an elevation of 1605 feet. These three ranges belong to 
one general group, are of the same geological formation, and form a 
connecting link between the mountains of Vermont and the highlands 
of the lower Hudson River valley. They are composed of slate rock, 
ledges of which crop out along their whole extent. Many of these 
ledges in Granville and Hebron are quarried, and furnish stone much 
valued for roofing, building and ornamental purposes. Among the 
slate quarries are found numerous veins of injected quartz, intersecting 
the slate strata in every direction, varying from the thickness of a sheet 
of paper to several inches. They often present cavities and surfaces 
beautifully studded with transparent crystals of quartz. The edges of 



6 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

the slate are sometimes bent and distorted by the quartz dikes, showing 
the extreme heat and great force of the injected veins. 

The Palmertown Mountains belong .to the primary formation, con- 
sisting principally of gneiss, granite, sandstone and impure limestone. 
' Their sides are very precipitous and broken, and their summits are 
wild, irregular masses of naked and barren rocks. The valleys between 
them are narrow and rocky, often bordered by precipices hundreds of 
feet in heighth. 

The northern part of Washington county lies in the water-shed of 
the St. Lawrence and the southern part in that of the Hudson. The 
crest or summit, where these water- sheds meet each other, forms an ir- 
regular line crossing the county near its central part, in a general east- 
erly and Avesterly direction. It is one of the "Great Divides" of the 
American continent, extending half-way across it and touching at almost 
no point an elevation raised so slightly above the level of the sea as in 
the town of Kingsbury, Washington county. It begins in the west line 
of the town of Kingsbury, not far from its northern extremity and runs 
thence in a direction about southeast by east nearly five miles; thence, 
curving to the south, it runs in a general southerly direction about 
seven miles into the town of Argyle; there, sweeping around the head 
waters of Wood Creek, it runs northeasterly, again crossing the north 
line of the town of Argyle into the town of Hartford; then turning 
easterly and keeping near the south bounds of the latter town, it runs 
into Hebron, crosses its northwest corner, and keeping close to the 
boundary line between Hebron and Greenwich, passes out of the county 
into Vermont. 

The Hudson River forms the western boundary of the southern part 
of the county, and Lake George the western boundary of the northern 
part. The northern part of the county has for its eastern boundary 
the narrows of Lake Champlain, and for part of its northern and north- 
eastern boundary Poultney River, while the Hoosick River forms part 
of the county's southern boundary. Besides these waters, which form 
part of its boundaries, the county contains the Batten Kill and Moses 
Kill, (originally called Moss Kil, probably from Captain Moss who set- 
tled opposite its mouth) which flow into the Hudson south of Fort Ed- 
ward ; South Bay, a projection of the Lake Champlain narrows, toward 
the southwest, and a narrow valley, continuing in the direction from its 
southern extremity, divides the Palmertown Mountains into two ranges. 
Wood Creek, called by the French Riviere dii cliicot or River of logs, flows 



GEOLOGY. 7 

northerly through the depression that extends from Lake Champlain to 
the Hudson River and empties into the southern extremity of that lake 
at Whitehall; and the Mettowee or Pawlet and Poultney Rivers are 
tributaries of Wood Creek, flowing into it from the southeast and east, 
near its mouth. Black Creek is a tributary of the Batten Kill from the 
north and White Creek a tributary of the Hoosick River, also from the 
north. Besides these water cotirses, are many smaller brooks and 
streams running into them from the valleys that fonn a network over 
much of the surface of the county. Cossayuna Lake lies near the cen- 
tre of the county, is the principal lake lying within its boimdaries, being 
about three miles in length. Its name is said, by the vSt. Francois In- 
dians, to signify "The Lake of the Pines." 

The geolog}' of Washington county is most interesting and has en- 
gaged the attention of many eminent geologists of our own and foreign 
lands. It covers a wide range, beginning in the northwest part of the 
county with the masses of granite and gneiss that tower above the 
waters of Lake George and impart to the scenery of that most beauti- 
ful of lakes it grander features. Black Mountain and the other moun- 
tains of the Palmertown range are granitic and belong to the great 
Adirondack group. All these were formerly classed as azoic though 
the present opinion is that the}' were original!}- stratified and have been 
crystalized by intense heat since they were deposited. The large 
quantity of graphite found in these rocks is generally believed to 
indicate the existence of vegetable life at the time of their formation. 
Passing southerly and easterly from Lake George we traverse the wild 
and rugged region of granitic mountains until we emerge into the 
depression which extends from Lake Champlain to the Hudson, through 
which flows Wood Creek and through which passes the Champlain Canal. 
Here we find the Potsdam sandstone, a fine, white, hard sandstone in 
even, uniform layers, overlying the granite and gneiss and appearing 
in precipices resembling walls of masonry. Crowning these precipices 
and stretching- eastward from them, appears a much softer, gray rock, 
composed of lime and sand in variable proportions, the calciferous sand- 
stone. Continuing further east we reach a pure limestone of a leaden 
blue color, compact and fine grained, the Chaz}^ limestone. Finally, 
beyond the limestone and at a distance of from three to six miles from 
the granitic rocks, we find slate or shale, which continues from the place 
where it is first encoiantered, east and south over the remainder of the 
county. The thickness of this deposit increases as we progress south- 



8 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

ward until it becomes very great. It is exposed along- the course of the 
Hudson River, where it rises above its waters, often to considerable 
heights, revealing the pecularities of its structure, and well known as 
the Hudson River shale. Eastward, it presents variations of structure 
and appearance exhibiting a cleavage transverse to the lines of stratifi- 
cation and a variety of coloring which make it of value for roofing 
material and other purposes. All of these geological formations seem 
to have been projected northward into a valley lying between two great 
primary ridges, the Adirondacks on the west and the Green Mountains, 
of Vermont on the east. As we leave the borders of Washington county 
and travel eastward, we pass beyond the slate and presently encounter 
again limestone and then a fine, hard, silicious sandstone, and finally 
the granitic masses of the Green Mountains. A distance of twenty -five 
or thirty miles in a direct line carries us across from the primitive rocks 
of one of these ranges to those of the other. 

Among the features of the geology^ of Washington coimty that are 
most interesting and have attracted most attention, the following are 
worthy of mention : 

The slate rocks which underlie by far the greater part of the county,. 
have been bent and broken and twisted throughout their whole extent 
until the ingenuity of the geologist is exhausted in vain endeavors to 
assign to their proper positions the strata, where exposed, or to ascer- 
tain the relations that exist between those that appear in juxtapo- 
sition. It is stipposed that this confused state of the rocks has resulted 
froin a contraction of the depression between the Green Mountain 
range and the Adirondack group which has broken up the stratified 
rocks and produced faults, fractures and even folds, or plications, piling 
lower la3'ers or strata upon upper ones, as floating ice is piled and 
broken in a river when its width is contracted and its waters forced 
through a rocky gorge. 

A remarkable illustration of the efi^ects which such a force can produce 
is seen in the appearance of the limestone cliffs at Bald Mountain. This 
limestone was once below strata of shale of great thickness but natural 
convulsions are supposed to have resulted in a great fold at this place 
which brought the limestone to the surface and threw oif the super- 
imposed shale. 

The slate rocks of the Taghkanic Range differ so greatly in structure 
and appearance from those in the western part of the county that they 
have caused geologists to entertain grave doubts as to the place that 



■ GEOLOGY. 9 

should be assigned to them. • These doubts have been heightened by 
the appearance of masses of limestone and sandstone in them at different 
points. The opinion, however, prevails that these formations are con- 
temporaneous with the 'Hudson River shales. 

The mineral wealth of Washington county is great and has served to 
enrich many of its inhabitants. The northern part of the county 
contains iron ore that has been worked with profit. Large deposits of 
gi"aphite are also known to exist. The limestone of Bald Mountain has 
been quarried and burned for lime on a great scale and the lime thus 
produced has had a great repiitation on account of its snowy whiteness 
which made it peculiarly valuable for certain purposes. Slates also 
abound, varying in character and quality, but valuable for roofing, 
flagging and other purposes. 

The soils of Washington count}^ comprise the gray and blue clay of 
the quartenar}^ division of Prof. Mather, the tertiary clay, or Albany 
and Champlain clay of Dr. Emmons, which, according to Dr. Asa Fitch, 
covers about one-seventh of the surface of the county ; small tracts of 
sandy soil which may be regarded as identical with the greater expanse 
of like soil in the northeastern part of Saratoga county and which may 
be called the Saratoga sands ; tracts of gravel or drift soils which have 
generally been regarded as forming the best agricultural parts of the 
county and which have been subdivided into original and re-arranged 
drift and finally those soils that have resulted from the decomposition 
of the surface rocks and which remain to-day where they where formed 
and have been called " Geest " or unmoved soil. These four soils sup- 
plemented by small tracts of muck or peat in swamps and narrow strips 
of alluvial soil along the margins of lakes and streams make up the. soils 
of the county. The clay soils are said to be best adapted to grass and 
grazing and produce much valuable hay. The sandy tracts though less 
productive than the clays are easier to cultivate and are said to have 
been first cleared. The gravel soils are less stiff and tenacious than 
the clays and less open and porous than the sands. They are com- 
pounded of diversified materials and well adapted for eas)'-, convenient 
and profitable tillage. Wheat was first raised upon them after they had 
been cleared near the last quarter of the last century but now they are 
thought best adapted to the growth of Indian com though in the rotation 
of crops, oats, rye, grass, potatoes, flax, barley, buckwheat, peas, beans 
and other crops are raised upon them. The geest soil of the Palmertown 

[2] 



10 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

mountain range has nourished the hixuriant forest growth that once 
flourished upon it but is too shallow for profitable cultivation. Made 
up in great part of vegetable mould, forest fires have sometimes almost 
consumed it. Geest in the limestone regions is said to be most admi- 
rably adapted for fruit growing and that in the region of Taghkanic 
sandstone and the slates of the southern and eastern portions of the 
county has been considered of remarkable fertility, the latter producing 
potatoes of excellent quality and in .great abundance. 

The day has passed when Washington county could hope to be notable 
as a wheat producing region, though it is said that when some of its 
lands were first cleared of their forest growth great crops of wheat were 
raised upon them. The northern part of the county which penetrates the 
Adirondack mountain ranges is generally unfit for ciilture. It is 
adapted only to the nourishing of a forest and to hold back the waters 
of the streams whose sources lie within its borders. If the State should 
pursue a wise policy it w^ould soon incorporate these lands into the 
Adirondack forest preserve and assist nature to restore them once more 
to the condition of a noble and stately forest to repair the ravages of 
fire and the axe and thus to make them what nature formed them and 
intended them to remain, a priceless possession of the people of the 
State and their posterity to remote generations. 

The remainder of the county will doubtless tend more and more 
toward development as a grazing country'- and use for daiiy farming. 
The sweet grasses of the hillsides and valleys through the central and 
southern portions of the county have long been recognized as one of its 
principal and most valued products and the increasing populations of 
the Hudson River valley create an increasing demand for dair}' products 
which no lands can better supply. Dair}' farming supplemented by 
market gardening it seems probable will be the notable agricultural 
enterprises in the future of Washington county, 

Washington county though pricipally esteemed an agricultural county 
is not without many and important manufacturing enterprises which 
will be mentioned more particularly in the histories of the several towns. 

The population of Washington county grew with great rapidity in 
the early years of its settlement attaining at the end of the first quarter 
of the present century a density which during the last three quarters 
of the century has only been increased about ten per cent. The popula- 
tion according to the last Federal census of 1890 was 45,690 souls. 

Washington county, N. Y., may, with truth, be said to be, par exel- 



CLASSIC GROUNDS. 11 

lence, the classic ground of the United States. On its territory, dating- 
back from the earliest time of its settlement, it has witnessed not only- 
predatory Indian warfare, but heard the tread of armies contending on 
the soil of the new world for the mastery of the old — sent forth by 
England and France — the mightiest powers at that day among the na- 
tions of the earth. 

The space allotted to me in this sketch would be all too short to re- 
late in detail, the hair- breadth escapes, the romantic incidents and the 
singular vicissitudes which have occurred within its borders. These 
have ever been favorite themes for such great novelists as Cooper and 
James to dilate upon; and I can merely touch upon the stormy events 
which occurred on its soil. 



CHAPTER II. 



Saratoga Patknt — Woods and Game of Washington County — Champlain's 
Expedition. 

The title to that part of the county lying on the southernmost tier, 
and named Easton, was derived from the " Saratoga patent " which was 
granted November 4, 1684 by Governor Dongan to Cornelitis Van Dyck, 
Jan Janse Bleecker, Peter Schuyler, and others. The title to the 
rest of its territory came from a grant of land given by Governor 
Fletcher to Reverend Mr. Dilliers, the Dutch minister in Albany, 
vSeptember 3, 1696. But three years afterward (1699) the legislature 
of the colony of New York, acting on the suggestion of the Earl of 
Bellomont, who had succeeded Fletcher as Governor, vacated this 
part — a circumstance which subsequently, when the county came to be 
settled, was a cause of many wrangles and conflicting disputes in regard 
to titles, which for a long time seemed as if they would be almost in- 
terminable. 

It is needless to remind the reader that, in the early beginnings of 
the history of the county, all of its ridges and valleys were covered with a 
primeval and heavy growth of oak, ash, elm (out of the bark of which the 
Iroquois fashioned their canoes,) beech, maple, pine and other indigen- 
ous American trees; while they furnished inexhaustible numbers of 
deer, bear, wolf, panther, otter and the industrious beaver, — all of 
which made this territory, with the Adirondacks in plain sight, the 



13 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

choicest hunting- grounds for the Iroquois. Indeed, it was the bountiful 
supply of every variety of game that this county afforded, which was 
one of the causes of the enmity and jealousy that had existed for 
centuries between the Algonquins and Iroquois. 

In giving, moreover, in this sketch the history of " William and Mary's 
war 1681-97 ; Queene Anne's war," 1708-13 ; the "Old French war," 
1744-50 ; the French war, 1754-63 ; and the Revolutionary war, 1775-83 
so far as they relate to Washington County— it will be necessary, in 
order to present the several campaig-ns in their entirety, and that a 
thoroughly comprehensive view may be obtained, to lay some of the 
scenes necessaril}' in contiguous counties. With this explanation the 
following sketch is offered to the reader. 

To Washington county belongs the exclusive honor of having been 
the first soil of the original thirteen colonies to receive the pressure of 
a white man's foot. It is true, that it has been stated, that as early as 
1598, a few Hollanders, in the employ of a Greenland commercial com- 
pany were in the habit of resorting to New Netherland ( i. e. New York 
Island,) not with the design of effecting a settlement, but merely to 
secure shelter during the winter months. This statement is involved 
in much obscurity and is exceedingly doubtful ; whereas the fact which 
I have mentioned above is well authenticated. 

CHAMPLAIN'S EXPEDITION. 

I refer to the expedition of Sieur Samuel de Champlain. He was 
a catholic gentleman of Saintonge, born in 1567, at the little sea- 
port of Brouage on the Bay of Biscay. He was a captain in the Royal 
navy; and his means being small, though his merit was great, Henry 
the Fourth, out of his own slender revenues, had given him a pension 
to maintain him near his person. But, being a true hero after the 
chivalrous mediaeval type, and his character being dashed largely with 
the spirit of romance, he soon chafed under such a passive and unevent- 
ful existence ; and being withal earnest, sagacious and penetrating after 
various attractions in the West Indies, Mexico, and Nova Scotia, in 
1608, he sailed up the St. Lawrence and founded the cit)- of Quebec ; 
the first permanent French settlement in Canada. ■ Five years previously 
he had explored the St. Lawrence as far as, the rapids above Montreal 
and the spot he now chose for what afterwards became the City of 
Quebec, bethought would be a true s,ite for a settlement or, rather a 



HISTORICAL TREATMENT. 13 

fortified post whence " as from a secure basis the waters of the vast 
interior might be traced back toward their sources and a western route 
discovered to China and the east." He thought, too, that for the advan- 
tage of the fur-trade the innumerable streams that flowed into the St. 
Lawrence, might all be closed against the foreign intrusion of a hostile 
force by a single fort on the brow of the mighty promontory which is 
now the " citadel of Quebec," and made tributary to a rich and perma- 
nent commerce ; while — and this was nearer his heart ; for he had often 
been heard to say that ' ' the saving of a soul was worth more than the 
conquest of an empire." — countless savage tribes, in the bondage of 
Satan, might, by these same avenues, also be reached and redeemed. 
Thus, almost from the time of his first landing, he began to cultivate 
the friendship of the Indians, both of those living in his vicinity and as 
far west as the Great Lakes. Nor was it long, before the savage tribes 
had become so drawn towards him that they were led to solicit his 
services in, making war upon their hereditary eneinies. . At that time, 
and as far as can be ascertained from original aboriginal tradition, the 
Adirondacks — rChamplain's neighbors, and a powerful division of the 
Algonquins, Hurons, Wyandots and other western tribes — had been 
engaged in a savage and perpetual war with the Iroquois, or as they 
afterwards came to be called, "The Six Nations." When, seventy 
years previous to Champlain's first arrival, viz ; in 1603, Cartier had 
ascended the great river and had discovered what is now Canada, he found 
the Mohawks, (a tribe of the Six Nations) living near the present city 
of Montreal. On Champlain's present visit, however, he found that 
that tribe had been driven by the Adirondacks south of the St. Law- 
rence and into the interior of the present State of New York ; and he 
also discovered that, for this reason, the tribe was in mortal fear, lest 
the Mohawks would return in large numbers and inflict dire revenge 
upon them. Accordingly, when in 1509 (the year after Champlain's 
arrival among them) some of the chiefs requested him to accompan}^ 
them on an expedition against their hereditary foes, he consented to do 
so ; being influenced in his decision, both by the fact that he wished to 
explore for himself a country regarding, which he had heard various 
marvelous accounts, and for the fiu'ther reason, that by aiding them as 
an ally he thought he would be obtaining a still further hold on their 
consciences which would eventually work for their spiritual good. 

Yielding, therefore, to these persuasions, Champlain, accompanied by 
several hundred Hurons and Adirondacks and twelve Frenchmen, the 



14 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

latter like himself, armed with arquebuses — something- like our modern- 
carbines, embarked on the long- contemplated expedition. When, 
however, the war-party reached the site of the present town of Sorel, 
the Indians quarrelled among themselves ; and many of them, together 
with ten of the Frenchmen, returning home, Champlain was left -with 
sixty Hurons and two of his countrymen who had refused to desert him. 

At length, on the second of July, Champlain and his two companions 
embarked with the Indians in twenty-four canoes and that day proceeded 
up the river to a point about nine miles above the Island of Theresa, where 
they encamped for the night. The next day, they continued on as far- 
as the lake which they entered the following morning (the 4th of July,) 
eleven years before the landing of the Pilgrims and sixty-six years- 
before King Phillip's war. " The lake," Champlain with pardonable 
pride says, in his journal " I named Lake Champlain." " Cumberland- 
Head " was soon passed, and he, then from the opening of the great 
channel between Grand Isle and the main, looked forth on the " Wilder- 
ness sea. " Parkman in his inimitable and picturesque style, has depicted 
the scene as presented at this critical moment as follows : 

" Edged with woods, the tranquil flood spread southward beyond the 
sight. Far, on the left, the forest ridges of the Green Mountains were 
heaved against the sun, patches of snow still glistening on their tops ,- 
and on the right rose the Adirondacks, haunts in these later years of 
amateur sportsmen from counting-rooms or college-halls, nay of advent- 
urous beauty, with sketch-book and pencil'. Then the Iroquois made 
them their hunting ground ; and beyond, in the valleys of the Mohawk,, 
the Onondaga and the Genesee, stretched the long line of their fire 
cautious and palisaded towns. 

"At night they were encainped again. The scene is a familiar one 
to many a tourist and sportsman ; and perhaps, standing at sunset on 
the peaceful strand, Champlain saw what a roving student of this gene- 
ration has seen on these same shores, at that same hour — the glow of 
the vanished sun behind the western mountains, darkly piled in mist 
and shadow along the sky ; near at hand, the dead pine, mighty in decay,, 
stretching its ragged arms athwart the burning heaven,' the crow 

1 Had Parkman written this a few years later he would probably have added the Kodak to> 
the list of the fair one's outfit. 

* Nor, is this an exaggeration on the part of Mr. Parkman. There is now (1899) in the Adiron- 
dacks — and within sight of Mr. Parkman's vision, a stump of a pine tree— the top of which, four feet 
from the ground is fully twelve feet in diameter. I, myself, from a count of its rings, two sum- 
mers ago, estimated that it must have been quite a tree at the beginning of the Christian era. 



HISTORICAL TREATMENT. 15 

perched on its top like an image carved in jet ; and aloft — the night- 
hawk, circling in his flight, and with a strange whizzing sound driving 
through the air each moment for the insects which he makes his prey." 

Continuing on their voyage, they coasted along the west shore of the 
lake until they came within two or three days journey of the place, 
where they expected to meet the enemy. After this they traveled only 
by night, each morning retiring into a barricaded camp to pass the day. 
The party advanced with the utmost caution, keeping their canoes close 
together and making no noise which might be heard by the enemy 
should they happen to be in close proximity. During the whole journey 
they used no fire and lived upon dried Indian meal soaked in water. 

In his account of this expedition, Champlain refers particularly to 
the superstition of the Indians, and the importance they attached to 
dreams. Whenever he awoke they would, he says, eagerly inquire 
whether he had dreamed or seen their enemies. Greatly to their 
chagrin, however, night after night passed without Champlain's dream- 
ing. At length, one day, while the party lay concealed near Crown 
Point, Champlain fell asleep and thought he saw one of the Iroquois 
drowning in the lake within sight of the encampment. On awaking 
he revealed his dream to the Indians, which, he says "gained such 
credit among them that they no longer doubted but that they should 
meet with success. That same night, about ten o'clock of the 30th, 
while proceeding cautiously along they suddenly met a war party of 
the Iroquois who were passing down the western bank of the lake in 
canoes. The exact location of the spot where this meeting took place 
is still in dispute ; but it seems probable that it was on one of these 
spurs of land which put out into the lake in the towns either of Dresden 
or Putnam. 

The Iroquois, on their part, upon discrying so unexpectedly their 
ancient enemies made all haste to erect a palisade by cutting down 
trees with their stone hatchets ' ; and as it was mutually understood 
between the opposing parties that hostilities were not to begin until 
day-break, the remainder of the night was spent by both sides in inter- 

' As Champlain, in hi.s journal states that the Iroquois used stone and other hatchets, a number 
of writers have vainly endeavored to speculate if these "other" hatchets do not mean made of 
steel or iron, some arguinjf that this fact shows that the Iroquois had of themselves advanced to 
proficiencies in making use of iron. The true e.vplanation would seem that these iron hatchets had 
been taken from the Algonquins in their forays — which hatchets in turn had been given to the 
Algonqtiins in trade by Champlain on his first landing in 1603. 



16 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

changing the vilest and coarsest epithets with each other, intenningled 
with singing, dancing and painting their bodies. 

" You Huron dogs are cowards," the Iroquois would shout from their 
barricade of logs. "How dare you come against the Hedonosauiie ? 
Have we not whipped you often before ? " 

" We will show you Mingo squaws what we are," the Hurons would 
reply. "You have beaten iis sometimes when you had two to one ; 
but you dare not fight us man to man ; and now we will whip you even 
if you have the most." 

" The scalps of the Hurons hang thick in our lodges \ our squaws and 
our children play with theiu every day. Soon they will play with yours ; 
you cannot stand before our arms." 

" Oh, ho ! " would a Huron yell out in reply, "your arms will be worth- 
less before these which we have. We have weapons you have never 
seen before. You will fall before them as if the Great Spirit had 
stricken you with his lightning." 

' ' And thus with boasts and taunts, with shouts and screams, with 
plentiful repetitions of their epithets of ' dog ' ' coward ' ' slave ' and 
'squaw' the sumiuer night passed swift, away." "Indeed" says 
Champlain, " this commerce of abuse, sarcasm, menace and boasting 
gave increasing exercise to the lungs and fancy of the combatants — 
much like the beleaguers and beseiged in a beleaguered town." 

The fact that all Indians give great weight to dreams was an additional 
impetus to the bravery of the Hurons in the coming conflict as all doubt 
on their part as to the result of the impending conflict was laid aside. 
Hence, as soon as the dawn began to shed its light over the placid lake, 
the Hurons were, so to speak, believing as they did that this dreain 
showed " he was twice armed who had his quarrel just," rushed into the 
fray with avidity. They were, however, met by the Iroquois with 
equal enthusiasm ; and Champlain hiniself in his Journal is compelled, 
with genuine adiuiration, to pay a glowing tribute to their robust, 
athletic forms, the exceeding gravity of their deportment and the 
confidence with which, emerging from their extemporized barricade, 
they took up their position. The Iroquois were led by three chieftains 
each of whom were distinguished by three feathers upon the top of his 
head, larger than those worn by the other warriors. These chiefs M^ere 
considered so formidable by his Indian allies that they beseiged Cham- 
plain, at all hazzards to bring them down with the "white man's 



WASHINGTON COUNTY: 

ITS HISTORY TO THE CLOSE OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



CHAPTER I. 



Erection of Charlotte County — Changes in Area and Boundaries — Name 
Changed to Washington — Geography — Mountain Ranges — Lakes and Water 
Courses — Geology — Agricultural Products, Poi'ulation, Land Grants and 
Titles — Early Physical Characteristics — Historical Treatment. 

At the first General Assembly, held pursuant to the instructions of the 
Crown to Governor Dongan, toward the close of the reign of Charles 
II in the 24th year after the Restoration, it was enacted by the Govern- 
or, Council and Representatives of the Province of New York, that the 
Province should be divided into twelve counties. The statute that con- 
tained this enactment was passed November i, 1683, and provided that 
the county of Albany shotild contain "the town of Albany, the county 
of Renslaerswyck, Schonechteda, and all the villages, neighborhoods 
and Christian Plantacons on the east side of Hudson's River, from Roe- 
lof Jansen's creeke, and on the west side from Sawers creeke to the 
Sarraghtoga. " This act was substantially re-enacted October i, 1691, 
at the first assembly held in the third year of the reign of King Wil- 
liam and Queen Mary. 

Afterward, in the twelfth year of George III, A. D. 1772, the Pro- 
vincial Legislature passed an act in which, after reciting that the lands 
within the county of Albany were more extensive than all the other 
counties of the colony taken together, and mentioning the inconven- 
iences resulting from the "'enormous extent" of the county, it proceed- 
ed to divide the territory of the county into three parts, restricting the 
name of Albany to one of these subdivisions and bestowing iipon the 
others the names of Charlotte and Tryon respectively. This act, passed 
March 12, 1772, provided that the northern bounds of Albany county, 
as newly constituted, should be "a west line drawn from Fort George, 



2 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

near Lake George," and the continuation of such line "east until it 
intersects a north line drawn from that high Falls on Hudson's River, 
which lays next above Fort Edward; thence south to the said Falls; 
thence along the east bank of Hudson's River to a certain creek called 
Stoney Creek; thence east five hundred and ten chains; thence south 
to the north bank of Batten Creek; thence up along the north bank of 
said creek until the said creek intersects the south bounds of Prince- 
Town; thence along the same to the southeast corner thereof; thence 
east to the west bounds of the county of Cumberland; thence south- 
erly and easterly along the west and south bounds thereof to Connec- 
ticut River." The act further provided that so much of tlie former 
county of Albany as lay within the colony, to the northward of the 
covmty of Albany as restricted by the act, and to the eastward of a line 
drawn from the intersection of the north bounds of Duanesburgh ex- 
tended with the Mohawk River, north, until it intersected the west 
line drawn from Fort George, previously mentioned, should be one 
separate and distinct county, and be called and known by the name of 
the county of Charlotte. 

At the same session, an act was passed providing for the election of 
town and county officers in the new county of Charlotte and their quali- 
fication, and imposing a penalty upon persons refusing to act in the 
offices for which they might be chosen. 

The following year provision was made for surveying and marking 
the boundary lines between the two counties of Charlotte and Tryon. 

The old lines established by these acts are still traceable in existing 
county lines and natural boundaries. The line running north from the 
Mohawk is co-incident with the present western boundary of Saratoga, 
Warren and Essex counties, and extended on the same course to the 
Canadian boundary. 

Charlotte county, as thus constituted, included a wide extent of ter- 
ritory stretching northward a hundred miles to Canada, having a width 
of more than fifty miles and including more than five times the present 
area of Washington county. It comprised the present counties of War- 
ren, Essex, Clinton, parts of Washington and Franklin, and a consid- 
erable portion of the State of Vermont. 

The name of the county which had been given to it in honor of Prin- 
cess Charlotte, the eldest daughter of George HI, was changed to Wash- 
ington county by the legislature of the State of New York on the 2nd 
of April, 1784. 



HISTORICAL TREATMENT. 17 

magical weapons of war. " The result of their solicitations is thus given 
by Champlain in his account of the ensuing engagement. ' 

" The moment we landed they [the Algonqtiins and Hurons] began to 
run about two hundred paces towards their enemies who stood firm and 
had not yet perceived my companions, who went into the bush with some 
savages. Our Indians commenced calling in a loud voice, and opening 
their ranks, placed me at their head about twenty paces in advance, in 
which order we marched until I was within thirty paces of the enemy. 
The moment they saw me they halted, gazing at me and I at them. 
When I saw them preparing to shoot at us I raised my arbequebus and 
aiming directly at one of the three chiefs two of them fell to the ground by 
this shot, and one of them received a wound of which he afterwards died. 
I had put four balls in my arbequebus. Our party, on witnessing a shot 
so favorable to them, set up such tremendous shouts that thunder 
could not have been heard, and yet there was no lack of arrows on one 
side or the other. The Iroquois were greatly astonished at seeing two 
men killed so instantly, notwithstanding they were provided with arrow 
proof armor woven of cotton and thread and wood ; this frightened 
them ver}" luuch. While as I was reloading, one of my companions 
in the bush fired a shot which so astonished them anew, seeing their 
chiefs slain, that they lost courage, took to flight, and abandoned the 
field and their fort, hiding themselves in the depths of the forest, 
whither pursuing them I killed some others. Our savages also killed 
several of these and took ten or twelve prisoners. The rest carried 
off the wounded. Fifteen or sixteen of our party were wounded by 
arrows, but they were promptly cured. " 

Three hours after the combat, the victors were on their way back to 
Canada. On their return, Champlain was greatly disgusted with the 
tortures to which his allies subjected their prisoners and, finally, 
unable to endure the sight longer, especially of one whose agonies were 
particularly aggravating, he seized his arbequebus and put an end to his 
sufferings. In Champlain's remonstrance against this torture he says 
he had told them that the French never so used their prisoners. "Not 
indeed," says Parkman, "their prisoners of war ; but had Champlain 
stood a few months later in the frenzied crowd on the Place de la Gre've 
at Paris — had he seen the regicide, Ravaillac, the veins of his forehead 
bursting with anguish, the hot lead and oil seething in his lacerated 

' Voyages de la Nouvo France. 

[3J 



18 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

breast, and the horses vainly panting to drag his strong limbs asstinder — 
he might have felt that Indian barbarity had found its match in the 
hell-born ingenuity of grave and learned judges." 

The victors made a proinpt retreat from the scene of their triumph. 
Three or four days brought them to the mouth of the Richelieu ' But 
when they entered the St. Lawrence River, the allies became alarmed 
with fears that their enemies were in pursuit of them and notwithstand- 
ing Champlain's encouragement, loosing all their courage, they fled down 
the stream at the rate of thirty leagues a day. The Hurons and Algon- 
quins made for the Ottawa — their homeward route — and also for the 
purpose of putting as much space between thein and the Iroquois as 
the)' could — each with a share of prisoners for future torments. However, 
they all parted with Champlain highly pleased ; and froin this time 
onward, their several tribes became firmly attached to the French and 
their interests. 

I have dwelt at length upon this expedition of Champlain, not only 
because it was the first conflict in New York on the Canadian border 
between the whites and the aboriginals, but also of the momentus 
consequences which this sally of Champlain entailed upon American 
civilization. Indeed, as it has been well and most justly said, "Thus 
did New France rush into collision with the redoubted warriors of the 
" Five Nations." Here was the beginning, in some measures doubtless 
the cause, of a long suit of murderous conflicts, bearing havoc and flame 
to generations yet unborn. Champlain had invaded the tiger's den ; 
and now, in smothered fury, the patient savage would lie biding his 
day of blood." 



CHAPTER III. 



William and Mary's War, 1681-1697 — Queen Anne's War, 1702-1713 — The old 
French and Indian War, 1744-1748 — Captain John Schuyler's Journal, 1790. 

For nearly one hundred years after Champlain's raid, nothing of 
stirring interest occurred in the county, it being for that length of time 
merely a war-path used by predatory bands of Indians, Dutch and 
French troops as they, each in turn, made their forays, either upon the 
Canadian or Dutch frontiers. 

> Also called the St. John and the Sorel River.s. See note ante. 



WILLIAM AND MARY'vS WAR. 19 

The result of the alliance between Champlain and the Adirondacks, 
as before hinted, was a most bitter hostility on the part of the Iroquois 
towards the French, which continued, without intermission, until after 
the conquest of New York from the Dutch in 1664. Dinnng- that long- 
period even the artful Jesuits failed to make any considerable impres- 
sion upon them — especially upon the Mohawks, at whose hands three 
of their number (Fathers Joques, Breboeuf and Lallemand) suffered 
martyrdom with the spirit of primitive apostles. More than once, 
likewise, before and after that date, the Iroquois swept over the French 
settlements with the torch and tomahawk, tracking- their paths in blood 
and carrying consternation even to the gates of Quebec. At length, 
with a view of putting an end to these forays, M. de Courcelles, 
Governor of Canada, thought to administer a staggering blow to the 
Mohawks by invading their villages, thus carrying the atrocities of war 
to their very doors. Accordingly, in the winter of 1666, that Governor 
despatched under a French officer, M. de Tracy, a party, consisting of 
some five hundred French troops and two hundred Canadians, .which 
proceeded up Lake Champlain on snow-shoes and thence by way of the 
site of Fort Edward, through the forests to the vicinitv of Schenectady. 
The expedition, however, was a total failure ; for, owing to their 
ignorance of the country and the intense cold of an unusually severe 
winter, by the time its destination was reached, the party had nearly 
perished. To add, moreover, to its discomfiture, some Mohawks, taking 
advantage of its deplorable condition, ambushed and killed a number 
of M. de Tracy's command ; whereupon the remainder of his force, after 
sufferings that seem almost incredible, finally reached Canada. 

Meanwhile, the Revolution of 1687, which brought William and 
Mary upon the throne, having been followed by war between England 
and France, the Colonies were of course involved in the conflict ; and 
as a consequence, the Iroquois — especially the Mohawks and Onon- 
dagas. — being supplied with arms by the Government of New York, 
rekindled their war- fires, painted their faces anew, and became, to the 
Canadian border, a greater terror than ever. In the latter part of 1687, 
a band of Mohawks destroyed the village of Chambley, bringing a 
number of their captives who had escaped the tomahawk to Albany. 
Again, two years afterward, in August, 1689, fifteen hundred Indians 
landed upon the Island of Montreal and slew every man and beast that 
they found. 

Indeed, these frequent and bloody incursions became such a serious 



20 WASHINGTON COUNTY : n\S HISTORY. 

obstacle to the growing prosperity of Canada, that Count Frontenac, 
then Governor of Canada, revived the policy of attempting to detach 
the Six-Nations from the English interest. To this end, through the 
efforts of a Jesuit priest, residing among the Oneidas, all the "con- 
federates," save the Mohawks, were induced to meet the emmissaries 
of the French in council at Onondaga. At the same time, with a view 
of making an unfavorable impression upon the Mohawks, as to the 
power of the English to defend their own settlements against the arms of 
the French King, a secret expedition was set on foot against Schenectady. 
The expedition passed, as usual through a portion of the county — 
which resulted in a frightful massacre of the slumbering inhabitants of 
that devoted town, on the night of the 8th of February, 1690. But the 
" Six Nations " were neither won to the interests o*f the French either 
by the persuasions of their agents at Onondaga or by the terrors of the 
scene of Schenectady. ' The veteran chief, Sadekanaghtie, an Onondaga 
chief of great eininence acted the skilful diplomatist at the council, 
while- the Mohawks, deeply sympathized with their suffering neighbors 
at vSchenectady and harrassed the invaders to good purpose on their 
retreat — attacking their rear near the present site of Fort Edward, and 
sending their war parties again into Canada, even to the attack once 
more on the Island of Montreal. 

The massacre at Schenectady, accompanied, as it was, by frightful 
Indian atrocities elsewhere along the border around New York, deter- 
mined the eastern Colonies to attempt the conquest of Canada. In 
pursuance of this determination Gen. John Winthrop, with a thousand 
Connecticut and New York troops, in the summer of 1690, set out 
from Albany with the intention of capturing Montreal. Proceeding up 
the Hudson, he crossed the county to Wood Creek and down this 
stream to the present village of Whitehall. But his expedition was 

' When the attack on Schenectady began at n o'clock at night never were people in a more 
wretched con.sternation. Before they were risen from their beds, the enemy entered their houses and 
began the perpetration of the most inhuman barbarities, with the most dreadful slaughter of the 
citizens. "No tongue," says Col. Schuyler, "can express the cruelties which were committed. 
The whole village was instantly in a blaze. Women, with child, ripped open, and their infants cast 
into the flames or dashed against the post.s of the doors. Sixty-three persons were massacred at 
the midnight hour; the Dutch Church and sixty-three houses were burned to a.shes ; the whole 
place, with the exception of five houses, left .standing and no more. Twenty-seven men and boys 
capable of walking were carried prisoners to Canada, a few persons fled naked to Albany, 
through a deep snow which fell that night in a terrible storm ; and twenty-five of these fugitives 
lost their limbs in the flight through the severity of the storm." "Bonney's Historical Gleanings." 
—Such was one result among many of a nearly similar character, of Champlain's shameful and 
entirly unprovoked raid on the Iroquois ! 



SCHUYLER'S JOURNAL. 21 

very similar to that of the King of France who "marched his army 
up the hill and down again;" for, giving as an excuse, that the Mohawks 
had failed to support him in such numbers as to warrant proceeding 
further, he returned to Albany. 

Chagrined at such an unlooked for result, Captain John Schuyler,' a 
younger brother of Major Peter and grandfather of General Schuyler of 
Revolutionary fame — got together a volunteer force of twenty-nine 
whites, and one hundred and twenty Indians, and started out for a 
foray on the Canadian border. His journal of this attempt to annoy 
the French is given in the proceedings of the New Jersey Historical 
Society (vol. L) and is particularly interesting as giving some of the 
earliest names of localities in Washington county. As it is, the volume 
of the New Jerse}- Historical Society containing it, is now of ver}^ 
great rarity, and I, therefore give the Journal in full.' 

JOURNAL OF CAPTAIN JOHN SCHUYLER. 

" Journal of Captain John Schuyler w^ho voluntarily embarked at 
Hout-Kill [Wood Creek] on the 13th of August, 1690, with 29 Christians 
[whites] and 120 Savages [Indians] whom he recruited at Wood Creek, 
as volunteers under his command to fight the enemy. Nearly about 
the swamps [het vevdronken land in the original MvS.] meaning the 
low lands that bordered Wood Creek. I met Captain Sander [Alex- 
ander] Glen on his way back to Albany because the greatest number 
returned. The aforesaid Sanders had in his company twenty-eight 
whites [Christians] and five Savages [Indians] and came from Tsimon- 
orosie [Ticonderoga'] where Capt. Sanders had been waiting eight 

1 Captain John Schuyler was born in Albany, April 5th, 1668, and was the youngest son of 
Phillip Pieterse Schuyler of Amsterdam, Holland, and Margaret Van Sleechtenhorst of New Kerck, 
and grandson of Pieter Schuyler, who about the year 1632, removed with his family from Amster- 
dam and established himself in the present state of New Jersey. In May, 1698, John Schuyler, then 
a colonel and a member of the King's council for New York, was at the head of the depvitation sent 
by the Earl of Bellomont,* Governor of New York, to the Count de Frontenac, at Montreal, with 
the communication of the Peace of Ryswyck. 

* For an account of the treacherous conduct of the Earl of Bellomont, regarding Capt. Kidd, 
the " Buccaneer," the reader is referred to my "Life of Wm. Kidd.'' 

2 Journal of Capt.\in John Schuyler, on his expedition to Canada and Fort La Prairie 
during the latter part of August, 1690— Translated by S. Alofsen, from the original Dutch Manu- 
script at present (1845) in the possession of Robert Schuyler, Esq,, of New York— For the loan of 
■which precious document I am indebted to the courtesy of my friend Wm. S. Styker, Adjutant- 
General of the .State of New Jersey. 

' Ticonderoga is known in American History as " Fort Vaudreuil," " Carillon," and " Ticon- 
deroga," or, as the British called it, " Ticonderago." Its first name was derived from one of the 
«arliest French Governor-Generals of Canada ; the second took the name from the twinkling 



23 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

days for his whole corps. From these, Captain John Schuyler, thirteen 
Christians and five Savages to continue with Captain Schuyler on the 
voyage to Canada and there to fight their mutual enemy. When the 
rest of the company had left us, and we had advanced nearly two hours 
on our voyage, we found two canoes which had been sent out to spy 
and which had shot an elk. After we had done eating and had sup- 
plied our canoes we proceeded on our way as far as Canaghsionie [now 
Whitehall.] The 15th day of August we came one German mile above 
the Crayn Punt [Crown-Point']. The i6th ditto, we advanced as far as 
Kanardero [Westport] and resolved at that place to travel by night, 
and that night went around to near the spot where Ambrosio Corlaer 
drowned, and there one of our savages fell into convulsions charmed 
and conjured by the Devil, and said that a great battle had taken place 
at Cubeck [Quebec] and that much heavy cannon must have been fired 
there ; and that one hundred canoes with Savages had come down the 
river [the Mohawk] from Coederogqua [Cadaraqui or Fort Frontenac, 
now Kingston on Lake Ontario.] And about one hour after sunrise we 
went to Oghraro, where I placed the first guard and nominated Barent 
Wemp as officer of the Guard. The 17th ditto, in the evening, w^e 
proceeded to Ogharonde. A Tsenondoga [Onondaga] Savage of our 
company died there of sickness, when the Onnidi [Oneida] Savage gave 
a bandt sewandt [wampum-belt] for the atonement of the dead." That 
day, Captain Schuyler with his subalturn officers and the chief of the 
Savages, resolved where they should make their attack upon the enemy, 
and they found good by the majority to fall upon Laplarie ; [La Prairie] 
whereupon the Makivase [Mohawk or Maquas] gave a wampum-belt 
to the Schaghkoekse [Scatikoke] Savages, as a token to stand by each 
other, and what they do call onnoghquasa in a Goeva. [The mean- 
ing of this is not plain]. The Onniderse [Oneida] Savages did the same 
to the Maqua [Mohawk] Savages by some hand-full of sezvandt [wampum] 
and in this manner this resolution was decidedly agreed upon and 
confirmed with kinsikaje [shaking of hands] as well as by the Christians, 

musical ripple of the rapids at the outlet of Lake George (Carillon meaning literally "a chime of 
bells") while the third is a composite Indian word referring to its situation, or rather to the 
cascades formed by the overflow of Lake George. About 1774 in a curious poem about this region, 
Col. Arent Schuyler de Peyster, Eighth (King"? regiment of) foot, adds another spelling^Tycan- 
darougue, which doubtless was the pronounciation. 

' Crown Point corrupted from the Dutch Cruin Punt— meaning "The Summit Point." 

2 We ea.sily trace in this the teachings of the Jesuit Missionaries regarding masses for the dead> 



vSCHUYLER'S JOURNAL. 23 

as by the vSavages as to who should be their chiefs or headmen, Carris- 
tasio and Tehoesequatho and Juriaen the ferocious. The i8th ditto, 
set out in the evening, and about midnight we saw a light fall down 
from out the sky to the south, by which we were all perplexed what 
token this might be. The 19th ditto, on account of the hard wind, we 
laid still, because we could not proceed, and we were laying about three 
miles above the sand bank of Siamble [Chambley'] The 20th ditto, 
we sent out spies along the west side of the river Siamble and found 
there a shield of a vanguard from Canada and 14 palisades to which 
they had bound their prisoners which they had fetched from New 
England. The 21st ditto, we proceeded to about one mile below the 
above mentioned sand-bank of Chambley, when we again sent out spies 
[scouts ?] who discovered some places where French and Savage spies 
had been keeping double night-watch and that the same had embarked 
for Siamble. There, after having first placed our canoes and provisions 
in safety, we, the 22nd ditto, pursued our voyage by land and traveled 
that day to close under La Prairie — the road being very difficult on 
accoimt of the softness of the clay, through which we had to pass, so 
that two of our Christians returned to our canoes. Coming through 
the clay, we heard much firing of musketry, by which we were 
astonished what it might be. The 22nd ditto, in the morning, I sent 
spies toward the fort to see how it was ; coming home, said all the folks 
were leaving the fort of La Prairie to cut corn. Then we resolved in 
what manner w^e should hinder them from obtaining the fort again and 
agreed to do so by stopping their way to the fort; but by the eagerness 
of the young Savages such was prevented, because Christians as well as 
Savages fell on with a war-cry, which displeased the officer, and that 
they fell on without orders having been given ; but they [nevertheless] 
made 19 prisoners, six scalps, under which were four women folk. The 
first prisoner was examined, asking him, what the firing of yesterday 
at La Prairie signified ? said, the Governor, yesterday went away with 
800 men and the people discharged their muskets at their departure, 
because their scouts had not heard from us. Then we fell upon their 
cattle ; we pierced and shot to death nearly 150 head of oxen and cows, 
and then we set fire to all their horses and barns which we found in 
the fields, their hay, and everything else which would take fire. Then 

• The River Richelieu, Sorel, Chamble (or Chambley) and the St. Johns— all of which names 
were triven to this river. 



24 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

we Christians [?] resolved to fall upon the Fort, but, could not move 
the Savages to give their consent to help us attack the fort [probably on 
account of the Indian fear of cannon; see report of Muskan in 1775.] 
The fort fired alarms when Monrejall [Montreal] and Siamble [Cham- 
bly] answered, so that we resolved to depart with our prisoners to 
Albany. A Savage of ours was stabbed to death, whom we burned in 
a barn, and we went that day seven German miles on o\xv way back. 
Then the Savages killed two French prisoners because they could not 
travel on account of their wounds. A little while after this we sat down 
to eat and thanked the Governor of Canada (The Count de Frontignac) 
for his salute of heavy cannon during our meal — they fired from the 
morning till two o'clock in the afternoon from all three of the forts. 
Thursday, we traveled to the River Chambley where our canoes were 
lying. The 24th ditto, we went as far as Fort Lamotte; the 25th 
ditto, we reached the sand point, where we shot two elks. The 26th 
ditto, we came to the little stone fort, and from there sent a canoe with 
men to Albany to bring the news of what had happened to us. The 
27th ditto, we proceeded to Canaghsione [Whitehall] and there shot nine 
elks. The 28th ditto, we travelled to the little het valletje [mill dam] 
above Saraghtoge. The 30th of August we arrived at Albany, under 
the command of Captain John Schuyler. ' 

It will thus be seen that the sole issue of this expedition of Captain 
John Schuyler was only the bringing to Albany of nineteen prisoners- 
and six scalps taken from those slain in this raid. 

At length, disgusted by these meager results, Major Peter Schuyler, 
then the Mayor of Albany, was ordered to conduct another expedition 
into Canada. He was selected for this duty as no one understood 
Indian affairs better than he; while his influence over the Iroquois was 
so great, that whatever Quider^ as they called him, either recommended 
or disproved, had the force of law. This power over them was sup- 
ported, and had been obtained, by repeated offices of kindness, and his 
signal bravery and activity in the defense of his country. Indeed, the 
Indians had conferred on him the name of Cayenquinago, or "The 

1 This Journal, I trust, will make plain to the reader, the atrocious barbarities of these border 
forays— whether undertaken by the Colonists or the French, it was the same; and this is still more 
noticable, when it is remembered that this cold-blooded narration of these cruel exploits— in which 
the writer of the Journal seems to glory— was not written by a Savage, but by one high up in the 
councils of a so-called civilized nation. Further comment, however, surely is unnecessary! 

2 Quider, the Iroquois pronounciation of Peter. Having no labials in their languages they- 
could not say Peter. 



SCHUYLER'S JOURNAL. ■.>5 

Great Swift Arrow," as a compliment for a remarkably rapid journey- 
made by him from New York to Schenectady on a sudden emergency. 

Collecting, therefore, a party of some five hundred Mohawks, and 
taking the same route as had been followed by his brother the year 
before, on the 26th of June, he reached the site of Fort Edward and 
on the 31st that of Fort- Anne. Tarrying here only long enough to build 
canoes', his command floated down to the mouth of Wood Creek (White- 
hall) and thence embarked on their voyage down the Lake. In his 
attacks upon La Prairie — the object of his journey — he was entirely 
successful; and after killing three hundred of the enemy, he returned in 
safety to Albany. 

Despairing, at length, of making a peace with the Five Nations'" 
Count Frontenac determined to strike a blow upon the Mohawks in 
their own country — which purpose was securely executed in the month 
of February, 1693. Accordingly, he sent against that tribe a body of 
four hundred and twenty-five troops and two hundred Huron- Wyandotts 
under the command of the French Partizan, de Mantelle. This com- 
mand on snow-shoes and with its commissariat on sledges entered Lake 
George by the carrying-place at Ticonderoga; and skirting the ice of 
that Lake along the western border of Washington county, it suddenly 
emerged from the primeval forest in front of the " Mohawk Castles." 
For once that vigilant race of warriors were taken completely by sur- 
prise; two of these castles being entered and captured without much 
resistance — the warriors of both having been mostly absent at Schenec- 
tady. On assailing the third, or "upper Castle, " however, the invaders 
met with a different reception. The warriors within, to the number 
of forty were engaged in a war- dance preparatory to going upon some 
military expedition upon which they were about embarking; and 

1 The making of a canoe was as follows: The Indians having selected from the forest the 
smoothest bodied and largest bass-wood or elm tree, the bark was carefully peeled in one entire 
sheet, free from cracks or holes. It was then spread out upon the ground, the smooth side down- 
ward, and held in this position by heavy stones and blocks of wood placed upon it. The sides and 
ends were then bent upwards, and retained in this position by numerous small stakes, so driven 
into the ground as to press against them. Thus, the shape of a boat was given to the sheet of bark 
which being securely held at every point by weights and stakes for several days until it became 
thoroughly dried, then retained its form. A few braces and other supports to render it more firm 
were then added ; and the rude craft was ready to be launched and carry its burden over the 
water. — Dr. Asa Fitch. 

2 It will be observed, in this narrative, that I frequently speak of the " Five Nations " and the 
"Six Nations," The explanation is this, viz: that up to 1735, the "Five Nations composing the 
Iroquois, was intact, until in that year, by taking in the Tuscaroras of North Carolina it was 
henceforth known as the " Si.x Nations." 

[3] 



36 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

though inferior in force, yet they yielded not without a strugtrle, nor, 
indeed, until thirty of the assailants had been slain. About three 
hundred of the Mohawks were taken prisoners in this invasion, in 
respect to which the people of Schenectady have been charged with 
bad condiict. They neither aided their neighbors, nor even apprized 
them of the approach of danger, although informed of the fact in due 
season themselves. Bvit "Quider, " the fast friend of the Indians, and 
his brother John, at once took the field at the head of the militia of 
Albany, hastily called together; and harrassed the invaders during 
their retreat. Sharply pursuing them, he caught up with their extin- 
guished camp-fires near Greenfield Center (5 miles from Saratoga 
Springs.) Two miles further on, the pursuing party learned, through 
a Christian Indian boy, that the French were only three miles in advance. 
Losing no time, they at once broke up their camp and marched to 
within a mile of the enemy, where the French had hurriedly thrown 
up a barricade near what is now known as the "Stiles' Tavern" in 
Wilton, on the eastern border of the Palmertown Mountains. ' Quider's 
party soon appeared before the hurridly improvized camp of the French. 
The forest at once rang with the war-whoops of the Savages; and the 
English Indians set to work to entrench themselves behind fallen trees. 
Meanwhile, the French and their Indian allies sallied out to dislodge 
them. The attack was fierce and the resistance equally so. With the 
French, a Priest of the " Mission of the Mountain " named Gay, was in 
the thick of the fight; and when he saw his followers run, he threw him- 
self before them, crying "what are you afraid of?" We are fighting 
with Infidels who have nothing human but their shape. Have you 
forgotten that the Holy Virgin is our leader and our protector, and that 
you are subjects of the King of France, whose name makes all Europe 
tremble ? Three times the French renewed the attack in vain. They 
then gave up the attempt and lay quietly behind their barricades of 
trees. So, also, did their English opponents. The morning was dark and 
dreary — a drifting snow-storm filling the air. The English were out 
of provisions and in a starving condition. The Indians on the English 
side, did not lack for provisions, having received some unknown to their 

1 How little does the casual visitor at Saratoga Springs, realize that, within a ride of one hour, 
he can drive to this spot, and bring himself into the events of our border war-fare of scarcely two 
hundred years since ! Many of the visitors, who are interested inthe country's annals would gladly 
take the opportunity of going to this spot— though many of thetfi (as in the case of the Saratoga 
Monument) distant only by rail one-half hour, care little about it only thinking of their immediate 
pleasure! 



QUEEN ANNE'vS WAR. 27 

white friends. " Schuyler was invited to taste some of the broth which 
they had prepared, but his appetite was spoiled when he saw them ladle 
out a man's hand out of the kettle. His allies were making their 
breakfast on the bodies of the dead Frenchmen ! " 

The French, in the early morning under cover of a severe snow storm, 
took the route through Lake George, while their dusky allies struck 
over the highlands in the town of Putnam, now in Washington county, 
to Lake Champlain. In one of the skirmishes, de Mantelle was killed; 
and, indeed, had it not been for the protection of a snow-storm and the 
accidental resting of a large cake of ice upon the Hudson, thus forming 
a bridge for their escape, the entire force of the French would have 
been cut off and either slain or captured. Nor, did the pursuers fare 
very much better. Schuyler's Indian allies were so short of food that 
they fed upon the dead bodies of their enemies ; and the latter, before 
reaching Canada, were forced to subsist upon the leather of their shoes 
and belts! 

QUEEN ANNE'S WAR. 

Although the Peace of Ryswick in 1597, put an end, for the time 
being, to these barbarities, yet in the spring of 1702, hostilities were 
again proclaimed by England against France and Spain; and it was in 
the progress of this conflict that the first changes from a primeval 
wilderness to partial clearings began to appear in this county. Happily, |^, 
too, the Five Natioils had just previously concluded a formal treaty, of 
neutrality with the Canadian French, and consequently, the murderous 
forays of the Algonquins and Iroquois on the confines of Canada and 
New York were not renewed on a great scale. Washington county, 
however, was still the thoroughfare for small predatory bands; but it 
was not until 1709 that any expedition of importance passed through 
its territory. But, before entering into a narrative of that expedition 
it will be of benefit to the reader to give a description of the route from 
Albany to Canada, especially as it became famous in the military 
operations of the Colonies from this time until the close of the Revolu- 
tionary war — that portion of it which lay across this county being par- 
ticularly noted as its most formidable part. Nor, in this matter, can I do 
better, perhaps, than to quote, on this point, the following description 
from the pen of that eminent local historian, Dr. Asa Fitch. He writes : 

" In passing from the Hudson to Lake Champlain, a greater amount 
of carriage overland had to be here encountered than occurred in all 



28 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the rest of the route; and this portage, consequently, came to be desig- 
nated as " the Great Carrying-Place." It began at the present village 
of Fort Edward, whence three routes. diverged to different points upon 
the Lakes. The eastern route was by wa)^ of 'Fort Anne and Wood 
Creek to the head of the Lake at the present village of Whitehall, a 
distance of twenty-four miles ; but aided by bateaux on Wood Creek, 
the land carriage on this route was only from six to ten miles. Indeed, 
in time of high water, loaded bateaux, and at all times, canoes, could 
pass from the Hudson up Fort Edward creek three miles, whence was 
a portage of one mile and a half to a point on Wood Creek where it was 
similarly navigable. The middle route diverged from the one already 
divided, near Fort Anne and passed through Welsh Hollow to the head 
of South Bay — an arm of Lake Champlain reaching three or four miles 
southwest of Whitehall. When there was ,a deficiency of bateaux on 
Wood Creek this route was resorted to for lancl-carriage in preference 
to the longer one to Whitehall. The western route was by way of 
Glens Falls to the head of Lake George, a distance of fourteen miles. 
The sandy soil in this direction always furnished a-fine road, unaffected by 
stormy weather, and through a more healthy district than were portions 
of the other routes ; ' but it had the disadvantage of an additional 
carrying-place at the outlet of Lake George. From Albany to Fort 
Edward, around the falls and rapids in the Hudson, a land-carriage was 
required amounting in the aggregate to twelve miles. These several 
portages, ere they obtained their distinctive names, were designated by 
numbers; " the Great Carrying- Place," being the first. Fort Miller Falls 
the second, the fall at Saratoga Dam, the third, etc." 

Immediately, upon the breaking out of hostilities the frontier towns 
of New England were ruthlessly ravaged by the tomahawk and scalping 
knife. It was seen, also, that it would be iinpossible for the rival 
French and English colonists to continue under two separate sovereigns 
with such contiguity of territory; and consequently, the most rigorous 
measures must be adopted if this momentous question was to be defi- 
nitely settled. Accordingly, the British Ministry, after war had been 
formally declared, lost no time in adopting measures and organizing a 
plan for the conquest of the French in America. This plan contem- 
plated an attack by water, by way of the St. Lawrence, iipon Quebec ; 
while, simultaneously, a force of fifteen hundred men from New York, 

1 Owing to the low lands along Wood Creek malignant dysentery often made its appearance 
among the troops posted in its vicinity. 



QUEEN ANNE'S WAR. 29 

Conneticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania were to rendezvous at Albany 
preparatory to the capture of Montreal by way of Lake Champlain. 
Although all of the above colonies were cordial in their support of this 
movement yet, that of New York entered most enthusiastically into 
the undertaking-. The Five Nations, through the efforts of " Quider " 
(Peter Schtiyler) straightway took up the hatchet and sent five hundred 
of their warriors into the field; while, in addition to the independent 
companies of the Colony four hundred and eighty-seven men were 
mustered into the service ; thus forming with the other troops from the 
other provinces a body fifteen hundred strong. And to show how earnest 
New York was in this matter, the commissioners for procuring and trans- 
porting provisions and other supplies, were authorized to "break open 
houses, to impress vessels, teainsters, horses and wagons." Of the 
carpenters and house-joiners, impressed into this service, thirty were 
sent in advance to the head of the Lake at Whitehall, where a hundred 
bateaux and the same number of bark canoes were constructed ; while, 
at the several carrj'ing-places along the route, block-houses, barricades 
and storehouses were built. At the same time, as preliminar}^ to the 
advance of the army. New York put forth all its energy to open a road 
at its own expense, which not only greatly facilitated the movements 
of the troops, but the forwarding of the supplies for the army with 
celerity and safety. 

This road began nearly opposite the present village of Schuylerville 
on the east side of the Hudson and ran up that river's bank to Fort 
Edward and thence by way of Wood Creek to the head of Lake Cham- 
plain — a distance of forty miles through a dense primeval forest. Along 
this route three forts were erected. The northernmost one of these, on 
the west side of Wood Creek, was built partly from funds furnished by 
the British government and was named, in honor of the reigning 
sovereign, Fort Anne'. Another was erected at the beginning of the 
" Great Carrying-Place " between the Hudson and the head of Wood 
Creek — on the same site as where Fort Edward was afterwards built — 
and was called Fort Nicholson in honor of the officer in command of 
this expedition; while the third, called Saraghtoga," was erected in the 

' The present Champlain canal passes partly through the spot which it encircled. 

5 Saratoga is an Indian word of the Iroquois language — Saratoga, Kayaderoga, and Sarahoga 
as it is variously written — and in view of the great confusion existitig in regard to it an explana- 
tion is in place. 'X\i<i \woxAm.&a.r\f<'^ The Place of the S^vi/t IVater." "' Saragh," signifyijig '^ Sivi/t 
ivater." " aga " or " oga " in the Iroquois dialect being merely an inflection or termination mean- 



30 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

present town of Easton, on the summit of one of the river hills opposite 
Schuylerville, about a mile south of the present road from that village to 
Galesville. These last two forts were built entirely at the expense of the 
Province of New York. All these forts were built entirely of wood, and 
were surrounded by palisades so constructed as to render their garrisons 
almost impervious to the fire of musketrv" — and as, at that time, cannons 
brought against them through the wilderness were undreamed of, these 
defences were deeiued amply able to ward of attacks either from the 
French or hostile Indians. The fort erected at Saratoga is the only 
one of which any description (detailed or otherwise) has come down to 
us ; and singularly enough, it is from the pen not of a contemporaneous 
native officer or even private, but from that of a foreigner — the Sweedish 
naturalist Kalm,' who visited it fifty years after its erection, viz; in 
1749. He writes: "Saratoga has been a fort built of wood by the 
English to stop the attacks of the French Indians upon the English 
inhabitants in these parts, and to serve as a rampart to Albany. It is 
sitiiated on a hill, on the east side of the River Hudson, and is built of 
thick posts driven into the ground close to each other, in the manner 
of palisades, forming a square, the length of whose sides was within 
the reach of a musket shot [i. e. a musket fired from side of the fort 
could carry a ball to the opposite side.] At each corner are the houses 
of the officers, and within the palisades are the barracks, all of timber.'^ 

Finally, all the arrangements for the descent upon Canada being 
complete, the army under the command of Col. Nicholson, left Albany 
and encamped at Fort Anne, where they awaited intelligence of the 
arrival of the forces from England destined for the assault on Quebec, 
in order that both attacks might be made in complete accord — each 
army co-operating with the other. 

Meanwhile, M. de Vandreuil, the Governor of Canada, learning of 
Nicholson's formidable force at Wood Creek, dispatched a force of fifteen 

ing* "the place of " or "the people of "hence, Ticonderoga "the place where the Lake (Lake 
George) shuts itself"; Scanda^« "the place or the people of the roaring water;" Nia^ar^, "the 
place of the falling waters," etc. Formerly, Schuyler's settlement on the Hudson, (near Schuyler- 
ville) was known by the name of Saratoga or " swift water " to distingui,sh that part of the river 
from the " still-water " which there begins and extends down to the present village of Stillwater- 
Saratoga Lake was afterwards thus named from its proximity to ^ara^htoga on the River; and 
when the Springs became famous, as they were within the district, they were named Saratoga 
Springs. The above is undoubtedly the true origin of the name, notwithstanding so called authori- 
ties have endeavored to give different solutions. 

* Letter of Sir William Johnson to Arthur Lee, of the Philosophical Society, upon the language 
of the Six Nations, February 28, 1772. Can there be any better authority ? 

> I shall have occasion further on to quote from this same gentleman. 



QUEEN ANNE'S WAR. 31 

hundred troops to Lake Champlain to oppose that officer's further 
advance; but learning through his scouts that the English army was 
superior to his own, as well that it was strongly posted, he caused his 
men to return. Nor, were the two expeditions on the English side 
more successful. The fleet destined for the attack on Quebec was 
diverted and sent instead to support Portugal against the power of 
Castile; while Nicholson's army, discouraged by delays, and greatly 
reduced in strength by a malignant and ver}^ fatal dysentery which 
broke out among his troops as they lay encamped on the bank of Wood 
Creek, ' returned to Albany with his army where it was soon afterward 
disbanded. 

In 171 1, another attempt was made by the Colonists for the invasion 
of Canada. Col. Nicholson was again placed in command, and with 
Cols. Schuyler, Ingolsby and Whitney, and with two thousand English, 
one thousand Germans and Dutch, and one thousand Indians of the 
Five Nations, he began his march towards Lake Champlain, taking, 
however, in view of his past experience at Wood Creek, the Lake George 
route. At the same time, an army of sixty-four hundred men, under 
Gen. Hill, sailed from Boston for a simultaneous attack on Quebec. A 
storm, hovever, coming up in the St. Lawrence, which drowned three 
thousand of his men. Hill, abandoning the expedition, returned to 
Cape Breton; and Nicholson, learning of this failure, returned once 
more to Albany. 

These two abortive attempts upon Canada not only greatly discouraged 
the Colonists, but occasioned for a time, derisive comment on the part 
of the Five Nations for the inglorious end of the efforts of their English 
allies, whom they began to look upon as a "weak and cowardly people. " 
" Indeed," such a fatality seemed to attend everj^ attempt to conquer 
Canada that many good people were almost constrained to believe that 
Providence had pre -determined that all such attempts should be 
frustrated." In fact, the outlook for New York was dark. The Indians 

1 This sickness was said by Charlevoix to have been produced by the treachery of Nicholson's 
Indian allies who designedly threw the skins of those animals taken in hunting into the creek. 
Doctor Fitch, however, questions this statement, and ascribes it to a malignant dysentery brought 
on by the troops drinking the stagnant water which flowed into the creek from the surrounding 
marches. See my previous note. The dreadful nature of the disease may be conjectured from 
the statement of the Jesuit, Father Marreuil, who had been taken prisoner by the English and 
confined in Albany. He states, that when on his release, he returned to Canada, and passed 
over the spot where Nicholson's army had encamped, he judged from the number of graves which 
he counted that at a low estimate a thousand were there buried. Estimating Nicholson's force at 
1500, fully sixty-six per cent must have fallen victims to this dreadful scourge ! 



32 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

became restless and listened favorably to the renewed propositions of 
peace from the French, who now boldly threatened — and so assured 
the Iroquois — an invasion of the Province of New York both by sea and 
land. Fortunately, however, the Peace of Utrecht in the spring of 17 13 
dispelled these clouds of gloom — the French King, Louis XIV, by this 
treaty, releasing his nominal Sovereignity over the Iroquois, and recog- 
nizing their country as subject to the Dominion of Great Britain. 

THE OLD FRENCH WAR. 

The repose which the Colonies had so long enjoyed since the Peace of 
Utrecht, under the administration of Sir Robert Walpole — owing prob- 
ably not more to the policy of that minister than to the pacific temper of 
the Duke of Orleans — the Regent of France during the minority of 
Louis XV- — was, of course, ended by the receipt of the Declaration of 
War against France in 1744. Indeed, the news of this declaration had 
not reached the colonies before Duquesnel, the French Governor of 
Cape Breton, invaded the Island of Canseau, burnt the houses, and 
made prisoners both of the garrison and its inhabitants. 

The declaration of hostilities was announced to the General Assembly 
of New York by the Colonial Governor, Clinton, on the i8th of July, 
1744, as a measure that had become indispensable to the honor and 
dignity of the crown ; but, above all because of the movements of France 
in behalf of the Popish Pretender. In his address, he urged immediate 
and strong measures for the security not only of the City of New York,. 
but for the general defence of the Colony and especially of the Frontiers. 

Meanwhile, during the period of peace that had elapsed from 17 13 to 
V 1 744, what means had been provided by the New York colonies, looking 

toward future troubles ? absolutely nothing ! No permanent settlement 
had ever been established in what is now Washington county as a 
bulwark to French aggressions. Fort Anne (not Fort St. Ann, as it 
has been incorrectly called from ignorance of the origin of its namej 
and built, as has been seen, in 1709, had been occupied for a few years 
only and then burned by Nicholson on the return of his army to Albany 
in 1 71 1 (Kalm by the way, saw the remains of its burnt palisades when 
he passed them in 1749, forty years after its erection.) The "Little 
Stone Fort," mentioned by Capt. John Schujder in 1690, in his Journal 
from which I have before quoted was evidently of no value even as a 
defense against the Adirondacks ; and Fort Saratoga was therefore the 



THE OLD FRENCH WAR. 33 

nearest post to the Canadian posts of La Prairie and Chambley in the 
north. Such, then was the condition of affairs, when in 1744, the " Old 
French war " broke out; and from the above description of the northern 
defences of New York, it will readily be seen that the war found that 
province utterly unprepared for this emergency. It was, therefore, 
not surprising that Clinton, in his announcement of hostilities, shoiild 
have intimated that measures had already been taken for strengthening- 
the posts of Oswego and Saratoga — which measures had consisted in 
some attention having been given to keeping the fort at Saratoga in 
repair, and having on the outbreak of hostilities dispatched a detach- 
ment of troops to garrison that fort. The next year Col. Phillip 
Schuyler was sent by the Colonial Government to erect six block-houses 
at Saratoga.' This was a work entailing great personal danger, as 
hostile Indians continually lurked behind every tree in the forest 
awaiting their opportunity to bring down any one within the range of 
their rifles. The house of Col. Lydius on the site of Fort Nicholson was 
burned and his son taken to Canada as a captive. Finally, on the i6th 
of NoAT-ember, 1745, an attack by some four hundred French and two 
hundred and twenty Indians under the command of a French partizan 
officer named Molang, was made upon the fort at Saratoga itself; and 
although it was not taken, yet not only was it virtually destroyed but 
the damage inflicted upon the surrounding property, was considerable. 
The artifice practiced by the Indians and French in their attack on the 
fort, is thus narrated by Kalm. 

"A party of French, with their Indians, concealed themselves by 
night in a thicket near the fort. In the morning, some of their Indians 
as they had previously resolved, went to have a nearer view of the fort. 
The English fired upon them as soon as they saw them at a distance ; 
the Indians pretended to be wounded, fell down, got up again, ran a 
little way and dropped again. AboiU half of the garrison riished out 
to take them prisoners, but as soon as they were come up with them 
the French and the remaining Indians came out of the bushes betwixt 
the fortress and the English, surrounded them and took them prisoners. 
Those who remained in the fort had hardly time to shut the gates, nor 
could they fire upon the enemy because they equally exposed their 
countnnnen to danger, and they were vexed to see their enemies take 

' The reader should bear in mind that when " Fort Saratoga " is mentioned it was in tlie town 
of Easton, Washington county, opposite the present town of Schuylerville. 

[4] 



34 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

and carry them off in their sight and under their cannon." The saw 
mills — which had to their owners became quite lucrative, and other 
buildings on the opposite bank of the river near the mouth of Fish 
Creek were burned to the ground except a new mill standing out of 
their course, as were other dwellings scattered along the river in the 
vicinity of those residing at this place. Hoyt says, in his ' ' Indian wars, " 
the greater part of them were killed by the toinahawk while others, 
scarcely so fortunate, were carried into captivity. The affair is repre- 
sented as having been barbarous ; and while I have not been able to 
find the number of persons killed, the slaughter must have been 
considerable, since Governor Clinton, in a speech to the Assembly 
several weeks afterwards, says : " Many of our people were murdered." 
Among the slain was the brave Captain Schuyler, a brother of Colonel 
Phillip Schuyler. More than one hundred captives were taken away, a 
majority of whom were blacks — slaves it is presumed. Thirty families 
were sacrificed in the massacre ; a description of the horrors of which 
would be but a repetition of the story of vSchenectady, fifty-five years 
before. So adroitly had the eneiny concocted their plans that every 
house must have been attacked at nearly the same instant of time. 
One famil)' only escaped, the footsteps of whose flight were lighted by 
the conflagragation. From Saratoga, the invaders crossed the Hudson, 
and swept with equal desolation over the village of Hoosic lying just 
beyond the southern limits of this county. A small fort at this place, 
commanded by Col. Hawks, made a spirited defence but was compelled 
to surrender. ThCvSe events laid Washington and other frontier counties 
naked and open to the ravages of the enemy down to the ver}^ gates of 
Albany, spreading general consternation through the interior of the 
Province. As a consequence, the inhabitants in the settlements most 
exposed rushed to Albany for security; and the males of that city, 
capable of bearing arms, were obliged to go upon the watch in the 
environs, each in his turn every other night. 

In the succeeding winter of 1746, the New York Colonial Assembly 
at the request of the Schuyler family, voted a hundred and fifty pounds 
to build a fort in place of Fort Saratoga — now, as before stated, in a 
useless and deserted condition. It was not, however, purely patriotism 
on the family's part, but it was intended to guard the large fields east 
of the old fort, which notwithstanding the destruction of the houses and 
mills it was hoped might be guarded. Accordingly, in the spring of 
that year, on a hill considerably west of the old site of Fort Saratoga, 



THE OLD FRENCH WAR. 35 

a new fortress was built. The new fort was much larger than the old 
one, being a hundred and fifty feet long by a hundred and fifty wide, 
with six wooden redoubts for barracks. It was fortified with six 12 
pound and six 18 pound cannon and received the name of Fort Clinton 
in honor of the English Governor George Clinton — father of Sir Henry 
Clinton, the British commander in the Revolution. 

In the early part of June, 1747, Col. (afterwards Sir William Johnson) 
was advised that the French, with their always loyal Indian allies (thanks 
to Champlain) were again .showing themselves in the vicinity of Fort 
Clinton near the old site of Fort Saratoga. By the i6th of the same 
month, he was also informed, by the return of an unsuccessful war- 
party of the Schoharies, of the approach upon Lake Champlain of a fleet 
of three hundred canoes, and admonished to be on his guard against a 
surprise. Immediately, on the arrival of this intelligence at Saratoga, 
Capt. Chew was ordered forth with a detachment of one hundred men 
to reconnoiter the country between that post and the head of Lake 
Champlain. Falling in with the enemy on the 19th of June, an action 
ensued in which fifteen of his men were killed and forty-seven more, 
with himself, taken prisoners. The detachment encountered by Chew, 
was commanded by the famous French partizan La Corn de St. Luc, who 
immediately fell back upon a much larger force, occupying the path of 
communication between the Hudson and the Lake. But La Corn did 
not fall back without leaving a detachment of three hundred men, 
imder AI. Laqi:el, to hn'k about Fort vSaratoga, and cut off approaching 
supplies and reinforcements. According to the representation of one 
of the enemy's Indians, who deserted and came to Saratoga, the main 
force of the French at the " Great Carrying-Place," consisted of twelve 
companies. The Indian informed farther, that St. Luc was to advance 
again immediately with artillery and mining tools, to lay siege to the 
Fort. Meantime, the three hundred who had been left in the environs 
of the Fort, imder M. Laquel, performed bold service by appearing 
openly and attempting to fire a block-house, used, as they supposed, as 
a magazine, by shooting burning arrows, against its walls. " The person 
appointed to perform this duty," said the commander of the Fort in a 
letter written to Col. Johnson, "had a blanket carried before him that 
he might not discover (to the garrison ?) the fire upon the tops of his 
arrows. The main body of the enemy soon moved down to Fish 
Creek about a mile south of Fort Clinton, and a detachment of their 
troops was thrown between that post and Albany. Col. Schuyler at 



36 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

once marched with his regiment, together with such other forces as he 
could raise on the instant to meet the invaders;' who, however, though 
greatly superior ia numbers, retired at his approach and fell back to 
Crown Point. 

Fort Clinton was held by the Colony during the remainder of the 
summer ; but, in the fall, the garrison were \vithdrawn and the fort 
burned by order of Governor Clinton, his reason being that the Provin- 
cial Assembly would not vote sufficient mone)^ to keep it in thoroiigh 
repair. Indeed the wonder is that Clinton had not adopted this measure 
long before. In the early spring of 1747, the officers wrote from Fort 
Clinton (or " Saratoga" as it was interchangably still called) that the 
garrison of that fort were almost in a state of rriutiny from lack of pay, 
and that they were fearful the garrison would desert in a body. Col. 
Roberts also soon after wrote Col. Wm. Johnson announcing the 
desertion of thirt3'-four men from a single company; and, indeed, the 
garrison had become so much weakened as to create serious apprehen- 
sions that the fort would be lost ; while the officers stationed at that fort 
wrote to the Governor that they could not persuade the designated quotas 
of the northern militia companies for the defence of that jeoparded 
position to remain. The fort at this time was garrisoned by the New 
Jersey levies, commanded b}^ Col. Peter vSchuyler; but as Mr. Clinton 
was inflexable in his purpose of drawing no more upon the Crown, there 
was grave danger of a speedy evacuation of the post for want of provisons 
In fact, information to that effect from Col. Schuyler himself, caused the 
Assembly to address the Governor on the 9th of September, praying 
earnestly for the adoption of such measures as would prevent the 
destruction of the forces, and prevent the fortress from falling into the 
hands of the enemy with its heavy cannon and stores. In the event of 
the threatened desertion of the Jersey men, the House suggested that 
the post might be regarfisoned by a detachment from the new levies 
destined against Canada, or if these levies were not still within his 
Excellency's command, they pra3'ed that a portion of the independent 
fusileers might be sent thither, the Assembly pledging the necessary 
supplies for that service. But before this address had been presented, 
the Governor had rendered any answer thereto unnecessary by a message 
of a very decided character in reply to the resolutions of the House of 
the preceding week, in which all the demands for supplies were reiter- 
ated, with a threat that unless the house should revoke its determination 
not to provide for the transportation of stipplie's'to the outposts he should 



THE OLD FRENCH WAR. 37 

be under the necessity of withdrawing the garrisons both from Oswego 
and Saratoga (Ft. Cbnton) — points which would of course be immediately 
occupied by the enemy. The Assembly, however, still proving con- 
tumacious, the Governor was forced, as we have seen, to the dismantling 
of the fort and the withdrawl of its garrison in pursuance of his threat. 

Aside from these events here related, little of moment occurred in 
Washington county, during the remainder of the war. Block-houses, 
in addition to the dilapidated fort at Saratoga were, by order of the 
Assembly, erected and a garrison maintained during the continuance of 
the war. A definite Treaty of Peace, however was soon after concluded, 
on the ythof October 1748, atAix LaChapelle; though considering the 
circumstances imder which it was concluded, and the relative strength 
of the parties and the condition of the alliance at the head of which was 
England, for the farther prosecution of the contest, it was a inost 
inglorious peace. 

Thus ended the " old French War," produced by the wickedness of 
Frederick, "the evils of which were felt in lands where the name of 
Prussia was unknown; and, in order that he might rob a neighbor whom 
he had promised to defend, black men fought on the coast of Coromandel, 
and Red-men scalped by the (ireat Lakes of America'." 



CHAPTER IV. 



Kalm's Journey Through What is Now Washington County in 1749: and the 
First Beginnings of Settlements in its Territory. 

Now, that the Peace of Aix La Chapelle, in 1748, has happily put an 
•end, for the time being at least, to the many bloody atrocities which I 
have been compelled, as a triithful historian, to place before the reader, 
this is a fitting opportunity to carry him into more peaceful scenes. 
Hence, he is invited first to look upon Washington county as it then 
was, through the eyes of the distinguished Sweedish botanist Kalm. 
This gentleman, whom I have before quoted, was evidently a person 
of very shrewd observation. He had crossed the Atlantic for the 
-purpose of exploring the fauna and flora of this country; and the 

• Macaiiley's Life of Frederick the Great. 



38 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

restoration of peace had enabled him to journey leisurely through what 
is now Washington county into Canada. 

With a g-uide he left Albany in a canoe, on the 23d of June, 1749, and 
proceeded up the river. Most of the farms above Albany lay along 
the river, all the houses were built of logs, the interstices being filled 
with clay. He observed that contiguous to each house was a small 
garden, in which squash, water-melon and kidney beans were reared — 
all having an orchard of apple trees. In Halfmoon was a large Diitch 
barn, which seems to have afforded him much amusement and this was 
the last building he saw in the Province ; for every house and barn north 
of that had been burned by the Indians during the war. The owners,, 
however, were now returning to their houseless farms or clearings — their 
families being huddled into temporary shanties — some of them, even, 
having no shelter except a slight shed made of a few boards. 

From his Journal, it would seem as if it cost our travellers much 
labor to get their canoe up the several rapids from the mouth of the 
Mohawk to Stillwater near Fort vSaratoga. 

He passed two Indians in their bark canoes. Occasionally he came 
across a clearing which had been turned into cornfields and meadows 
before the war but were now entirely deserted : He reached Saratoga, 
June 24th, and lay over night in a hut of boards orected by a family 
who had ventured to return after the massacre. "On the following 
morning," says the narrative, "we proceeded up the river, but after 
we had advanced about an English mile,. we fell in with a waterfall 
[Saratoga Dam] which cost us a deal of pains before we could get our 
canoe over it. Above the fall the river is very deep, the water slides 
along silently and increases suddenly near the shores. After rowing 
several miles, we passed another water fall [Fort. Miller] which is longer 
and more dangerous than the preceding one. We intended to have gone 
quite up to Fort Nicholson [Fort Edward] in the canoe, but we found 
it impossible to get over this upper fall, the canoe being heavy and 
scarce any water in the river, except in one place where it flowed over 
the rock, and where it was impossible to get up on account of the steep- 
ness and violence of the fall. We were, accordingly, obliged to leave 
our canoe here, and to carry oiir baggage through unfrequented woods 
to Fort Anne, on the river Wood Creek, during which we were quite 
spent on account of the heat. We passed the night in the midst of the 
forest, plagued with mosqi:etos, gnats and wood-lice, and in fear of all 
kinds of snakes." At Fort Anne he describes the weather as being 



KALM'S JOURNEY. 39 

•oppressively hot, while he was again tormented by midges (black flies ?) 
and mosquetoes. Speaking of the gnats he says they are ver}' minute 
and are ten times worse than the larger ones, the mosquetos; for 
their size renders them next to imperceptible ; they are careless of their 
lives, suck their fill of blood, and cause a burning pain" The insect, 
here alluded to, says Dr. Fitch, we readily recognize as being the 
Siuiuruicn noievum of Dr. Harris, which still occurs in woodland 
districts in June, throughout this vicinity. More recent researches 
plainly show that Kalm was in error in regarding this and the mosque to 
as identical with similar European insects. ' 

Embarking with their guide, as they paddled down AVood Creek they 
•came near having their canoe stove in by running upon the sunken logs 
which abounded in this stream. But with much care this calamity w^as 
■avoided; and finally they reached the French post at Crown Point. 
Here Kalm tarried till an opportunity occurred for his passing down the 
Lake to Canada, while his guide returned to Albany. In his progress 
through the countr}' he makes observations respecting the musk rat, 
the sassafras, the chestnut, the fir or hemlock, the hawthorn, aub-hil- 
locks, wood-lice, the arbor-vitae, the elder, the iron-wood, squirrels, the 
-"Giant's Pots" worn in the rock at Fort Miller, and other valuable 
objects of a similar character. He also made many discoveries of rare 
and beautiful plants before unknown to Europeans ; and in our swamps 
and lowlands a modest flow^er, the Kahnia Glnnca (swamp laurel) blooms 
in perpetual remembrance of his visit." 

EARLY vSETTLEMENTS. 

Although the County and the Colonies, in general, were once more at 
peace, yet the exposed situation of this territory to attacks from Canada, 
■entirely discoi:raged its settlement at this period. It is true, that a few 
bold emigrants occasionally made their way into this coimtry ; btit the 
majority preferred (and with reason) to locate west of Albany in the 
neighborhood of the friendly Mohawks, rather than run the risk of 
having themselves and families tomahawked and scalped or taken 
-captives into Canada by locating so near the Canadian frontier. 
Scarcely, therefore, any advance was made in settling the countr}' to 
the north of Albany at this period. Moreover, all thoughts of enter- 

1 Dr. Fitch, in this remark, is undoubtedly correct— for Fitch has long been recognized as 
perhaps, the greatest authority on entimology in the United States. 



40 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

prises of this nature, were criven tip, when, in 1731, the French, taking- 
advantage of the pusillanimity of the English bnilt and occupied Crown- 
Point on Lake Champlain, twenty miles north of this coimty, and Fort 
Frederick, on the promontory called by the Iroquois Ticonderoga — the 
definition of which is '* There the lake shuts itself. " The erection of these 
two forts at these places, far within the territory which Great Britain 
had ever regarded as her own and upon the very ground to which this, 
province had, for over thirty years previously asserted its jurisdiction 
by the grant made to Dellins (to which allusion has been made in the 
introductory' chapter) was felt to be a most impudent and audacious, 
proceeding, palpably contravening the treaty stipulation existing 
between England and France, and, as has been hinted, the seemingly 
manifest indifference of the mother countr}' to resent this occupation 
of its territory, and thus afford no protection to settlers, who otherwise 
might gladly have taken up land, was a great hindrance to the early 
settlement of this countr}^ Indeed, all the northern colonies (as is seen 
by the minutes of the various assemblies) looked with feelings of sad 
forboding and dismay upon the establishment of Crown Point and Fort 
St. Frederick, forseeing that, on the recurrance of hostilities, it would 
be a nest from which bands of savage mauraders and scalping parties 
would be continually issuing to lay waste with fire and tomahawk the 
frontier settlements, even the people of Albany, dreading lest some of 
these calamities would fall to their lot. George Washington, himself, 
also, in the House of Burgesses in Virginia, predicted much trouble in 
the future for the Colonies — " if this flagrant defiance of treaties was to 
go unredressed. " 

The New England Colonial Assemblies, also, were fierce in their 
condemnation of this outrage, and indeed, it is really marvellous that 
Great Britain (not the Provinces as has been alleged) should have so 
passively submitted to such an alarming encroachment. The mother 
country, however, having thus tamely submitted, the colony of New 
York took the matters up, and began to devise some way in which these 
encroachments cotild be rendered nugatory. 

And among the various schemes proposed for averting the dangers 
to which the Province of New York was exposed from the French 
settlements at Crown Point and Ticonderoga that which promised to 
be the most successful, was the project of planting a strong colony of 
hardy, resolute, energetic settlers upon the vacant lands between the 



EARLY vSETTLEMENTS. 41 

Hudson River and Lake Champlain. ' Could such a settlement be formed, 
it would be a cordon through which the enemy could not easily break 
to molest the coimtry below. But from what part of the British 
Empire could settlers, possessing- the desired qualities, be drawn ? The 
question was not difficult of solution. Their corporal habits and powers 
of endurance, their stability of sentiment and indisputable perseverance, 
and more than all else, their noted antipathy to Popery and their exe- 
cration of France and Frenchmen, as the espousers of the Pretender's 
claims to the British throne, set forth in strong- relief the Protestant 
inhabitants of the Highlands of Scotland, as the ven^ people for forming- 
the proposed .settlement. A proclamation was, therefore, published by 
the Governor, and circulated through north Britain, inviting "loyal 
Protestant Highlands " from that country to colonize the vacant land 
in this district — setting forth the liberal terms on which these lands 
would be granted them. 

Captain Laughton Campbell was, by this proclamation, induced to 
visit this coimtry in the year 1737. He traversed the country, and was 
pleased with its soil. The Indians whom he here met, admired his 
athletic form and the gay colors of his tartan costume and entreated 
him to come and live in their neighborhood. Lieut. -Governor Clarke, 
the acting Governor of the Province of New York, at that time, also 
urged him to found a settlement here, promising him a grant of thirty 
thousand acres, free from all charges, except those of the survey and 
the King's quit-rent. Thus allowed, Captain Campbell returned to 
Scotland, and sold his estate situated on the Island of lola, and collected 
a company of eighty-three protestant families comprising four htindred 
and twenty-three adults and a large number of children. The delays, 
disappointments and calamities with which these adventurers from the 
Heberdees were destined to be tantalized and disheartened ere they 
reached the goal for which they ever were starting, may almost remind 
one of the jcmrneyings of Israel to the Land of Promise. Defraying the 
expenses of their passage, Capt. Campbell arrived in New York with 
part of this company in 1738, the remainder coming over the following 

1 The account in this chapter which here follows, I have taken almost in its entirity from 
Dr. Fitch's Historical Scenes of Washington County. It would have been a comparatively ea.sy 
matter to have changed his phraseolog-y, and so have not acknowledged any indebtedness, but, I 
prefer to give it to the reader just as he wrote it— and it stands a monument to his great power of 
research— for it should be remembered that when he entered this field, 1849, it was one entirely 
unploughed— nor do subsequent investigations (save in a few minute and unimportant particulars) 
contravene his statements. 



4:-^ WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITvS HLSTORY. 

year. " Private faith and public honor," says Smith in his history of 
New York, "loudly demanded the fair execution of a project vSO 
expensive to the undertaker and beneficial to the colony." 

But the prospect of having a large tract speedily improved and 
thereby rapidly enhanced in value, excited the cupidity of the Governor 
and the Surveyor-General, and they refused to make out the promised 
conveyance unless they received the usual fees therefor and were also 
allowed a share with Campbell in the grant. Upon his refusal to take 
the land upon these terms, the Cjovernor began tampering with the 
emigrants to induce them to settle upon the proposed lands independent 
of Captain Campbell. The Assembly of the Province was in session at 
this time but that body and the executive were in open hostility to each 
other. To alarm them, therefore, into a compliance with his wishes in 
this affair, the Governor, on the 13th of October, 1738, communicated 
to the Assembly that the French were intending to commence settle- 
ments at Wood Creek and advised them without delay, to provide for 
the immediate settlement in that district of the Scotch emigrants just 
arrived, and for whose relief he asked aid. But ere the Assembly had 
acted on this subject the Governor became so exasperated with their 
opposition to him that he dissolved them and ordered a new election. 

In his opening speech, March 23, 1739, the Governor said: "The 
peopling of that part of the count}" to the north of vSaratoga will be of 
great advantage to the Province in strengthening the frontier and 
enlarging your trade. I hope, therefore, you will give them some 
needful assistance. This subject was further pressed upon the attention 
of the Assembly by a "pathetic petition from these poor strangers;" 
and Mr. Livingston's compassion for them in their destitute situation 
was so excited that he introduced a motion for a gift of seven pounds 
to each family to enable them to settle the lands at Wood Creek. But 
the suspicions at once arose in the minds of some of 'the members that 
this money would go to the Governor to pay his fees for sig-ning the 
grant. Thus influenced by their su.spicions they rejected the proposition. 

An abhorence of being dupes to the self-interested motives of those 
in power, is the only apology that can be made in behalf of the Assembly 
for thus withholding their patronage from a measure of siich importance 
to the province. Had the proposed settlement been commenced at this 
time, it would doubtedlessly have formed a powerful barrier on this 
frontier at the outbreak of the French War of 1744, and wovild have 



EARLY vSETTLEMENTS. 43 

warded ofE those calamities with which the feeble and scattered Dutch 
settlements were then assailed. 

Hence, the illiision of these poor emigrants that they were to be 
speedilv located and build np another Arggleshire in the wilds of 
America was dispelled; and the forlorn situation in which they now 
saw themselves placed, was, even to their stout hearts, all but over- 
whelming. Poor and friendless, in a strange land, ignorant of the 
langiiage, costumes, modes of labor, where could they hope to obtain 
shelter ? Where could their wives and little ones find food unless the 
ravens fed them ? to escape from impending starvation many enlisted in 
an expedition against the West Indies, while others wandered forth from 
New York and became scattered among the Dutch inhabitants of the 
several river counties above that city. 

Captain Campbell, after finding that he could not obtain the grant 
from the Governor, upon the terms that had been promised, memoril- 
ized the Board of Trade in England; but the diihculties and delays 
attending the step, were so great, that his means became exhausted and 
he was unable longer to keep his emigrants from starvation. With the 
poor remains of his broken forttme, he purchased and settled down 
upon a small farm in the Province. A few years after, in 1745, when 
the Rebellion broke out in Scotland, he hastened back to that country 
and served imder the Duke of Cumberland. After the war, he returned 
hither to his family, and soon afterwards died, leaving a widow and 
six children to feel in after-years the consequences of his disappoint- 
ments. Such is the sad history of one whose high sense of honor and 
sound judgment, whose energ)^, patriotism and military talents, 
eminently fitted him for the enterprise in which he embarked. But 
for the baseness of those in power, there can be little doubt that the 
name of Laughton Campbell would now be inscribed in the annals of 
our State, as the Sir William Johnson of the Upper Hudson. 

After the failure of Campbell's undertaking, the project was much 
discussed of purchasing the "Saratoga Patent" from its proprietors 
and settling it with friendly Indians, erecting a fort thereon, and culti- 
vating the lands for them, and thus form a barrier to protect the countr}^ 
below. But no steps were undertaken towards carrying out the scheme. 

THE FIRST FAMILY LOCATED IN WASHINGTON COUNTY. 

Within the bounds of Washington county, we hWe no indications of 
but one family as located at this period ; and in regard to this family 



44 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

our information is very meager as has already been stated in my Intro- 
duction. The claim of Dellins to the lands from the Batten Kill to 
Crown Point appears to have been transferred by him to the Rev. John 
Lydius — althoug-h it appears that 1600 acres on the Hudson above the 
mouth of the Batten Kill had been granted May 5th, 1732 to Cornelius 
Cuyler (a merchant in Albany) and Wm. Kettlehuyn. But probably, 
for the purpose of strengthening; their claim by possession of residence 
upon this tract, Col. Lydius,' a son of the minister, erected a house at 
Fort Edward and resided there with his family, engaging in traffic with 
the Indians — one of the inost lucrative branches of business in the 
Province at that time. His daughter Catharine was born here at this 
period, and was as near as I can ascertain the first child born of civilized 
parents in Washington coimty." She married Henry Cuyler, and died 
at an advanced age at Greenbush, April, 1820. Of her four sons, the 
two oldest entered the British service in the time of the Revolutionary 
War. One of these rose to the rank of a colonel in the army and was 
killed in Portugal; the other was a post-captain in the nav}-. Her third 
son, William Howe Cuyler, in the war of 1812, was an aide-de-cainp in 
the American army on the Niagara frontier, and walking along the 
river bank one dark night with a lighted lantern, was killed by a shot 
from the opposite shore. Of her youngest son. Burton, we have no 

information. Her three daughters were Mrs. John Sprole, Mrs. 

Le Roy and Mrs. Richard L. Smith. 

vSuch then, was the condition of Washington county, at the time of 
which we are now writing. The silence of its primeval wilderness was 
unbroken, save by the hooting of the owl or the scream of the panther ; 
and its solitude was undisturbed except by savage beasts, or still more 
Savage tribes as the latter passed two and fro upon the war-path. 

■ As I am writing this I have before me a paper The Neiu \ 'ork Weekly Journal, January 27, 1734, 
addressed to Mr. John Henry Lydius — Albany. — S. 

' I am fuUj- aware that this statement is disputed, but I prefer, every time to take the authority 
f)f Dr. Fitch to any. other. — S. 



THE FRENCH WAR. 45 



CHAPTER V. 

Thk Frknch War, 1754-63 — Sketch of Fort Edward — Visits to It of Distin- 
guished Tkavellf.rs, 

Blood had been spilled; Washington defeated; and the scalping knife 
unsheathed from the Ohio to the Kennebec; yet England and France 
were still at peace. Notwithstanding the bold assumptions of France, 
the vacillating course of the Newcastle Ministry rendered a definite 
policy toward that government impossible; and although the defeat at 
the Great Meadows roused the ministry sufficiently to ask the advice of 
Horatio Gates, a youghtful officer just arrived from Nova Scotia, yet 
they soon relapsed into their former imbecility, leaving the charge of 
American affairs to the Duke of Cumberland, at that time the Captain- 
General of the armies of Great Britain. 

The Duke of Cumberland, who has been described as "cruel and 
sanguinary," regarded the opportunity thus afforded for indulging in 
his favorite pastime, war, with delight; and rightly judging that the 
French were bent on hostilities, he dispatched in January, 1755, while 
the ministry was still hesitating, two regiments to America under the 
command of Edward Braddock — a supercilious officer and one more 
acquainted with military manoeuvers in Hyde Park with men in glittering 
uniforms than with Indian warfare. He sailed from Cork the 14th of 
January, and arived in the Chesapeake the latter part of February. The 
French, thoroughly cognizant of the intentions of the English, notwith- 
standing the absurd diplomatic subtleties with which England's foolish 
prime-minister was amusing the French Court, immediately made 
preparations for sending large reinforcements into Canada; and with 
such a design a fleet of transports carrying troops under the command 
of Baron Dieskau, a veteran soldier, sailed from Brest early in May. 

Meanwhile, as the prospect of war became more certain the alarm of 
the colonists grew so great as to induce the Governor of New York to 
send a message to the Assembly on the 4th of February in which he 
reminded them of the weak state of the frontier fortifications, should the 
French make — which was quite possible — a descent upon the Province. 
Albany he thought, should therefore be fortified without delay, and a 



46 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

strong fort built at some advanced place upon the Hudson, whence 
scouts could be sent out to gain intelligence and give timely notice of 
the enemy's approach. 

While New York was thus showing its active interest in the ucal of 
the Colony, a conference of the Colonial Governor had been called by 
Braddock, shortly after his arrival in Virginia, to meet on the 14th of 
April at Alexandria, Xa.., to devise measures for a vigorous prosecution 
of the war against the French. Yet, at the same time, it was distinctly 
understood (as no formal declaration of war had as yet passed between 
the two Governments) that Canada was not to be invaded, but only 
French encroachments along the frontier repelled. 

A- this conference, four separate expeditions were planned by 
Braddock and the Royal Governors — the first for the complete reduction 
of Nova Scotia was to be commanded by Monckton, the Lieutenant 
Governor of that Province; a second under Braddock himself, was to 
recover the Ohio Valley; the third under the command of Shirley was 
to expel the French from Niagara, and form a junction with Braddock's 
forces; and the fourth was to be given to Major-General William Johnson, 
having for its object the capture of Crown Point. The latter was to 
have under him the provincial militia of New York and the warriors of 
the Six Nations ' ; and his acknowledged influence over the latter, 
especially, gave great promise of success. 

The result of three of these so carefully planned expedition are 
matters of record and does not come within the province of this History 
Monckton's expedition in Nova Scotia, aside from his brutal act of 
expelling the inoffensive and peaceful Acadians, was of no moment in 
regard to the effect of the war; Braddock's Expedition failed with his 
death and defeat, most ignomiously: while, Shirley, in his attempt on 
Niagara, got no farther than Oswego, on account of a severe storm on 
the Lake which destroyed his fleet and the consequent desertion of his 
Indian allies. 

Thus, two, and in fact, three of the expeditions so carefully planned 
at Alexandria had signally failed. The hope of all the Colonies were 
now centered, in fearful suspense, upon the result of the expedition of 
Major-(ieneral Johnson. Crown Point had been strongly reinforced. 

' The " Five Nations " had now become the " Six Nations " as stated in a previous note, owing 
to the former having finall}- adopted the Tuscaroras of North and South Carolina, into the con- 
federacy. The reasons for this adoption do not properly come within the province of this history 
and are therfore not given. 



SKETCH OF FORT EDWARD. 47 

Dieskau, who had advanced to South Bay (Whitehall) at the head of 
Lake Champlain, with a force of fifteen hundred French, Canadians 
and Indians, was watching with eagle eye his movements. vShould 
Johnson fail the hopes of the Colonies are lost ! 

But the end of June (1755) all the forces destined for the reduction 
of Crown Point had assembled at Albany. They were composed chiefly 
of Provincial militia from the Colonies of Massachusetts and Connecticut. 
New York had contributed one regiment to the expedition, and New 
Hampshire had raised for the same object, five hundred sturdy 
mountaineers, and had placed them under the command of Colonel 
Joshua Blanchard, who had as one of his lieutenants John Stark, 
afterward the hero of Bennington. 

In the beginning of August, General Lyman was sent forward with 
some six hundred men — the greater part of the troops to erect a fort on 
the east bank of the Hiidson River at the "Great Carrying Place" 
between that river and Lake George, and which afterwards received 
from General Johnson the name of Fort Edward. This was in accord- 
ance with the recommendation of the Governor to the Assembly which 
has been before referred to ' 

And here, before following up the army and military tactics of 
General Johnson, a description of this fort — a fort which, as it will 
afterward be seen, was destined to play such an important part not only 
in this present French War, but in that of the Revolution, will be given. 

SKETCH OF FORT EDWARD. 

Fort Edward, a short distance from which the death of Jane McCrea 
took place — an event which will be narrated in its proper place in this 
History — has an important niche in American history. In Colonial times 
it was a central point of interest both to the Whites and to the Indians; 
and, as we have seen, in the wars of William and Mary, Queen Anne's, 
the old French, and the French Wars both sides were equally anxious 
to possess it. In consequence, as we shall still further .see, in the 
progress of this history, many thrilling adventures occurred in its 
immediate vicinity. 

The first white man, says Sir William Johnson, who settled in the 

> It was while on his way to Lake George that in pursuance of the same general plan, that 
Lyman in August of this year, halted his troops and built a fort in old Saratoga at the mouth of 
Fish Creek (now Schuylerville on the Hudson. 1 and named it Fort Hardy in honor of Sir Charles 
Hardy then Governor of New York. 



48 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

town, was Colonel John Henry Lydins, son of a Dutch minister of 
Albany. Lyditis was a man of extensive acquaintance with the Indians, 
having resided much among them in Canada for several years when he 
married, and again at Lake George. He erected several mills on an 
island opposited the present village of Fort Edward; and hence the 
name the place long went by — " Lydius' Mills. " His daughter, Catha- 
rine, was, as I have previously mentioned, tJie first zv/iite child born in 
Washington county. The street in the Village of Fort Edward, now 
Broadway, was formerly called Lydius, after its founder. Colonel 
Lydius carried on an extensive trade with the Indians at this point for 
several years. He was, however, extremely unpopular with the Red- 
men, who justly accused him of having on various occasions, cheated 
them in land transactions. This feeling on the part of the Indians, at 
length culminated in 1747 (as has been noted) in which year they burned 
his house on the Island and carried his son prisoner into Canada. 

Old Fort Edward stood close on the east bank of the Hudson, a few 
rods below the present railroad bridge. Nothing now (1899) remains 
of it, except as in the case of Fort Hardy at Schuylerville, a few slight 
motmds, where were the earth works, and the broken bricks and pottery 
which are mixed plentifully with the soil. At the best, it consisted only 
of a square fortified by two bastions on the east side, and by two semi- 
bastions on the side towards the river. It was built, as we have seen, 
in 1709 by the English for the protection of the northern frontier, and 
was called Fort Nicholson after its builder. Colonel Nicholson. After- 
wards, it was known as Fort Lydius. After the failure of Colonel 
Nicholson's remarkable, though entirely abortive, expedition for the 
subjugation of Canada — an expedition the organization of which cost 
the Colonies and that of New York in particular a vast amount of 
money — the fort was abandoned and allowed to go to decay. 

As before stated, in 1755, the English under General (afterward Sir 
Williain Johnson) made a forward movement towards the capture of 
Crown Point, and as one of the preliminary steps to this expedition 
General Phineas Lyman was sent forward to rebuild the fort. The 
site of the old fortification was abandoned, because it was too much 
commanded and a large redoubt, with a simple parapet and a wretched 
palisade was built on a more elevated spot not far distant. It stood 
close on the bank of the Hudson on the north side of the mouth of 
Fort Edward Creek. It was constructed of timber and earth. The 
ramparts were sixteen feet high and twenty-two feet thick and mounted 



SKETCH OF FORT EDWARD. 49 

six cannon; and withall, a deep fosse was excavated in front of its two 
sides fronting upon and being protected by the above said Creek. In 
addition, moreover, to the several buildings which stood inside of the 
walls of the fort, and which accommodated 200 men, large store- 
houses and barracks were reared on the island opposite to it in the river. 
The first received the name of Fort Lyman from its builder and was a 
most important depot for the munitions of war in the northern move- 
ment of the English forces; besides which it was a general rendezvous 
of the army, and became afterwards a large hospital for the sick and 
wounded. As has been mentioned, this place also received the name of 
"The Great Carrying Place" — the reason for this designation being 
that the rapids and falls in the river above the fort made it impossible to 
ascend any farther with the bateaux. Consequently, the goods, arms 
and amunition were here unloaded, and carried overland either to Wood 
Creek at Fort Anne, where they were reshipped and thence taken to 
Lake Champlain, or else to the head of Lake George and thence down 
that lake to the carrying place at its foot into Lake Champlain by way 
of Ticonderoga. 

In 1755, Israel Putnam was in General Lyman's regiment as the 
captain of a company, and was in all probability with him in the 
rebuilding of the fort. At any rate, he was frequently there during 
1755 and the two succeeding years, and formed in the fort a head- 
quarters for himself and his rangers. In 1757, he performed some 
heroic feats in its behalf — which will be narrated in detail in their proper 
place. In that year, a band of Indians approached it with the secrecy 
and craftiness so characteristic of the race and attempted to surprise 
and capture the garrison, but Putnam, then a, major, was not easily 
taken. He and his men were ready for the Savages and put them 
speedily to flight. In the winter of that same year, the fort was acci- 
dentally set on fire. The flames spread rapidly, and for a time, it looked 
as though every thing would be destroyed. The powder magazine was 
in great danger, as the flames were getting very near it. Putnam, 
thereupon, placed himself between the fire and the magazine; and for 
an hour and a half, fought the flames imtil they were finally subdued. 
The covering of the magazine was scortched and blackened, and the 
brave Putnam came out of the conflict with his face, arms and hands 
fearfully burned. Many weeks passed before he recovered from his 
injuries. Two years afterward, 1758, Putnam and a few of his followers, 

[6] 



50 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

were again chased by the Indians in their canoes to a short distance 
below the fort. They were in a bateau and rapidly rowed down the 
river with their pursuers close behind them. Approaching the Falls 
at Fort Miller, there seemed to be no way of escape but by going over 
them. So the bateau was steered to the Falls and went over the 
verge. The Indians fired, and looked for the utter destruction of the 
crew, when, to their utter amazement, they were seen gliding rapidly 
away unharmed! Neither the leap over the Fort Miller Falls, nor the 
rapids below, nor their bullets had harmed their supposed victims; and 
henceforth, the Indians (as in the similar case of Washington at the 
fight of Braddock) considered Putnam as under the special protection 
of the Great Spirit 1 

During the year 1757, the fort was garrisoned by colonial troops under 
Colonel Haviland — for the protection of the northern frontier of the 
county. This appears from the following extracts from an Orderly 
Book — the manuscript of which belonged to General Phineas Lyman, 
and which has only within the last few months been purchased and 
printed at his own expense by Dr. W. Seward Webb. In his preface 
to this Orderly Book Dr. Webb speaks justly of General Lyman " as a 
man whose sterling qualities were not recognized by his English 
colleagues and superiors. The credit that was owing to him was given 
to others ; but a study of the campaign of 1756, shows how ably he 
performed his part, and how much its success depended upon his 
efforts. " Even General Johnson, as we have seen, completely ignored 
Lyman — a circumstance which must ever remain a blot upon that 
General's otherwise justly acquired fame. 

EXTRACTS FROM THE ORDERLY BOOK. 

" Fort Edward, July 27, IJSJ. Parole Fort William Henry: 

The Lines are not to turn out Upon any Alarm Till ye Proper Signals 
are Made of ye 23d Instant. The Officer Commanding ye Covering 
Party at ye Brick- kill is Em mediately upon Hearing an}^ Shots in The 
Woods To Take Upon Him ye Comd of the Workman and File Into ye 
Woods So far as ye May Judge necessary in order to Get Upon ye 
Enemy's Rear and at ye Same Time To Send one Man of His Party To 
ye Commanding Oft> To Acquaint Him of it." 

VdkXoXo, H ally fax " Fokt Edward, y///)' -'6', //J/. 

All ye Salers, Ship Carpenters and Boatman that Were Returned By 
ye Several Corps to Hold them vSelves in readiness to March To ye Lake 
[Lake George] 



SKETCH OF FORT EDWARD. 51 

The Ranging Companys Being to fire at a Mark Between ye Hours 
of 4 and 6 o'clock. The Troops To Be Immediately Acquainted with 
it that They May Not Be Alarmed with it — In ye Same Time )^e Com- 
manding offr of ye Sevl Regts may Send Such Men as Cannot Draw 
their Charges to Fire them off In Presence of an Uncommissined offr 
who will take Care that their Men F'ire Their Pieces When No Accident 
May Happen 

Pa.vo\e Lifif/ofi.' "Fort Edward, Nov. ioth 1757 

Col. Haviland's Orders, All ye Massachusetts Rhod- Islanders and 
Conneticutts (Except ye two companys of ye Conneticut Rangers) to 
hold them Selves in Readiness to march as soon as Carriage can be pro- 
vided the men of these Corps now on Duty are to be Relieved by ye 
N. Yorkers." 

Mayr Rogers is to order a Guard of Rangers to post proper Sentry 
from it, in ye Live Stock Garden and Fire wood and No Sort of thing to be 
taken out of ye Garden without proper leave from Col. Haviland and 
no fire wood to be touch 'd as they will be answerable for it and ye 
offender punished with the utmost Severity. 

The Guard at ye Island End of ye Bridge [The one opposite Fort 
Edward] not to Suffer any more to pass over toward ye Garden after 
the Retreat — and any Preson [peison] yt [that] is known (Either of ye 
Troops in Gar^on [Garrison] or on ye Island) to put down any part of 
a Hut on Either Side ye water will be brought to a Court Marschal for 
ye Same unless he Shall have particular leave for it. 

Parole Hauipton. Fort Edward, Nov. 10, 1757. 

The Massachusetts and Rhodislanders to march Emmediately. They 
are to apply to M^ Lesley for carriage or proceed according to ye orders 
they have Reed from Lord Loudoun. " 

The Fort retained the name of Fort Lyman' but a few years, when 
it was changed to that of Fort Edward, in honor of Edward, Duke of 
York, a grandson of George II, or the brother of George III. During 
the Revolutionary War (as it will later on be seen) it was at times held 

' The writer evidently was in advance of his age — having already adopted the phonetic spelling 

2 Robert Roger.s, born Dunbarton, N. H., about 1730: died in England in 1800. During the French 
War he commanded with great credit to himself, a battalion of rangers who rendered excellent 
service. This battalion was the model from which Rufus Putnam (a cousin of " Old Put") organ- 
ized the company of rangers which so effectively protected the Ohio Company settlements during 
the Indian War, 1791-1795. In 1760, Major Rogers, with 200 men, took possession of Detroit. In 1766, 
he was appointed by the King, Governor of Michilinacnac. He was subsequently accused of plot- 
ting to sell the Post to the French and was sent m irons to Montreal, tried by Court Martial and 
acquited, but deprived of his office. Shortly after the outbreak of the Revolution, he was arrested 
by Gen. Washington as a .spy. Relea.sed upon parole he violated it, joined the British army and 
placed in command of the Queen's Rangers. In 1765 he published a "Journal of the French War." 
His "Journal of the Siege of Detroit" was published in i860. He was, taken all in all, a notable 
character. 

3 Major-General Phineas Lyman, after whom the fort was first named, and to whom allusion 
has already been made, was born at Durham, Conn., about 1716; was graduated in 1738 atf Yale 
College, in which he was afterwards a tutor three years; and settled as a lawyer in Suffield. He 



5-4 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

by the British but was the greater portion of the time in the hands 
of the Americans, affording protection to the farmers of the surrounding 
country, who frequently flocked into it when fearful of the raids of the 
Indians and Tories. 

And now, at this point, and in order to present a sketch of Fort Edward 
in i/s entirety I must request the reader to follow me some years ahead 
of the time reached in this history of Washington county, to events 
which took place during the Revolutionary War. 

At the approach of Burgoyne's army from Fort Anne it was evacuated 
by the Americans by order of Gen. Schuyler until after the surrender 
of the British Army at Saratoga. While Burgoyne lay at Fort Miller, 
it was occupied by General Riedesel with his Brunswicker's. While here 
Riedesel buried two large bateaux inside of the Fort for the benefit of 
Col. St. Leger in case the latter should retreat by way of this place, 
marking the spot by two crosses to give the appearance of two graves. 
St. Leger, however, fell back on Oswego, and the bateaux were after- 
ward found by the American Army — Riedesel was also quartered for 
three weeks on the garrison ground at Fort Amherst,' at the Half-way 
brook between the present village of Glens Falls and Lake George.' 

Schuyler was greatly blamed for not defending Fort Edward, 
though there was really no fort to defend, as Schuyler writes to Gen. 
Washington in July 1777, "of Fort Edward there is nothing left but 
ruins. I have frequently galloped my horse in at one side and out at 
the other.". 

Ticonderoga, as will be seen further on, had to be evacuated because it 
was commanded by Sugar Loaf Mountain. Fort Edward was in like 

filled several public offices. In 1755, he was appointed Major-Cienei'al and Commander-in-chief of 
the Connecticut forces and built Fort Lyman (as previously mentioned) near Fort Edward, N. Y. 
In 1758, he served under Abercromby. He was at the capture of Crown-Point by Amherst, and at 
the surrender of Montreal. In 1762, he commanded the Provincial troops in the e.xpedition against 
Havana. In 1763, he went to England, as the agent of his brother officers, to receive their prize- 
money ; also as agent of land on the Mississippi and wasted eleven years of his life. Being deluded 
for years by idle promises, his mind finally sunk down to imbecility, at last his wife, who was a 
sister of Prest. Dwight's father, sent his second son to England to solicit his return in 1774. A tract 
of 20,000 acres was granted to the petitioners, Feb. 2d, 1775, after his return, he embarked with his 
eldest .son for the Mississippi, and both died soon after their arrival at West Florida in 1775. 
Dwight's Traziels. 

1 The Fort Amherst here mentioned was a fortified camp, rather than a " Fort." 

' Madam Riedesel joined her husband at Fort Edward. "The following day passed Ticon- 
deroga, and about noon, arrived at Fort George [the present village of Caldwell at the head of 
Lake George] where we dined with Col. An.struther, an exceeding good and amiable man, who 
commanded the 62d Regiment In the afternoon wt, .seated ourselves in a calash and reached Fort 
Edward on the same day, which was the 14th of Augu.st (1777) — Stone's Translation of Madame 
Riedesel's Journal. 



vSKETCH OF FORT EDWARD. 53 

manner commanded on all sides. Major Gerard, the Marquis de Chas- 
tellux who visited it in the winter of 1780, described it as situated in a 
basin or valley both as to the ground and encircling forests. ^'Such is 
Fort Edward, " he writes ''so much spoken of in Europe although it could 
at no time have been able to resist 500 men, with four pieces of cannon. " 
The fact is Fort Edward was not a strong position and Kalm criticized 
both of these forts justly, on his visit to America in 1749. "They 
were" he wrote, "the result of jobs, badly located and badly built, 
with the design to put money into some favorite's pockets.' " 

The Marquis de Chastellux closes his description of his trip to the 
Fort in the following graphic and picturesque words : 

"I stopped here [Fort Edward] an hour to refresh my horses, and 
about noon set off to proceed as far as the cataract [Glens Falls] which 
is eight miles beyond it. On leaving the valley, I pursued the road to 
Lake George, I had scarcely lost sight of Fort Edward before the spec- 
tacle of devastation presented itself to my eyes, and continued to do so 
as far as the place I stopped at. Those who were in Burgoyne's way alone 
experienced the horrors of his expedition. Peace and industry. had con- 
ducted cultivators admist these ancient forests, men contented and 
happy before the period of this war ; but on the last invasion of the 
Savages, the desolation has spread from Fort Schuyler [Fort Stanwix, 
the present village of Rome, N. Y.] to Fort Edward. I beheld nothing 
around me but the remains of conflagrations ; a few bricks proof against 
the fire, were the only indications of ruined houses and homes; whilst 
the fences still entire, and cleared out lands announced that these 
deplorable habitations had once been the abode of riches and happiness. 

' ' Arrived at the height of the cataract it was necessary for us to quit 
our sledges and walk a mile to the Hudson River. The snow was 
fifteen inches deep, which rendered this walk rather difficult and obliged 
us to proceed in Indian file in order to break a path. Each of us put 
ourselves alternately at the head of this little column, as the wild geese 
relieve each other to occupy the summit of the angle they form in their 
flight. The sight of the cataract was, however, an ample recompense. 
The Mohawk River at the Cohoes seems to fall from its own dead weight ; 
that of the Hudson frets and becomes enraged. It foams and forms a 
whirlpool, and flies like a serpen,t making its escape, still continuing its 

menaces by horrible hisses. 

'i 

> By this remark of Kalm, it would seem sis if the political contractors of the present day for 
the building of our public works, are not much worse than those of an earlier period. Yet it is the 
fashion to hold up the past as being so much superior to the present in purity and uprightness. 



54 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

" It was near two when we regained or sledges, having two and twenty- 
miles to return to Saratoga, so that we trod back our steps as fast as 
possible, but we still had to halt at Fort Edward to refresh our horses. 
We employed this time, as we had done in the morning, in warming 
ourselves by the fires of the officers who commanded the garrison. 
There are five in number, and have about one hundred and fifty soldiers. 
They are stationed in this desert for the whole winter ; and I leave the 
reader to imagine whether the garrison be much more gay than the two 
most melancholy ones of Gra valines or Briancon, our own in France. 
We set off again in an hour, and we had not gone far, before, just before 
dark, I had the satisfaction of seeing the first game I had met on my 
journey. It was a bevy of quails. They were perched to the number 
of seven upon a fence. I got out of my sledge to have a nearer view 
of them. They suffered me to approach within four paces ; and to make 
them rise I was obliged to throw my cane at them ; they all went off 
together in a flight similiar to that of partridges, and like them they 
are sedentary." 

Fort Edward, in fact, seems always to have been a point of unusual 
interest to distinguished travellers. Thus, in 1796, President Dwight 
of Yale College visited the place.' He thus speaks of it: 

"Fort Edward was planned by Captain Ayres" an engineer on the 
British Service, and completed by Gen. Schuyler'' in the year 1755, 
principally with a design to check Savage incursions, and to be a depot 
for millitary stores and to protect the persons employed in transporting 
them. We found the work almost entire. It is built of earth, in the 
form of an irregular scjuare, with three small bastions on the north, 
west, northeast and southeast angles and a counterfeit on the southwest. 
On two sides it was fronted by a ditch ; under the third runs the Hudson 
the fourth is the bank of a deep sunk rivulet. Froin a sudden attack^ 
therefore, it was well secured ; but being in the neighborhood of several 
higher grounds, could not have been defended against artillery half an 
hour ' Its original name was Fort Lyman; derived from Major General 

' In giving these extracts from the works of eminent tourists, I have taken for granted that the 
inhabitants of Washington county would be glad to know how a part of their county was viewed 
at this time. 

2 Captain William Eyre, is here referred to— a distinguished engineer of that day, and one of 
tien. Braddock's most skillful artillerists. His services will again be alluded to. 

3 A mistake. It was completed by General Lyman. 

* This it will be remembered was the opinion of the Marquis de Chantellux, an account of 
whose visit is given in this chapter. 



SKETCH OF FORT EDWARD. 55 

Lyman, who at that time commanded the New England forces encamped 
Tiere." 

" And, Dr. Benjamin Silliman of Yale College also thus speaks of a 
visit he made to Fort Edward in 1819. He says : 

"At this Fort [Fort Edward] we first observed the canal which is 
destined to connect the head waters of Lake Champlain with those of 
the Hudson. It is now on the point of being united with this river, and 
they are constriicting the walls of the canal of a very handsome hewn 
stone, which is obtained, as I am informed, near Fort Anne and presents 
to the eye aided b}^ a magnifier very minute plates and veins. It is of 
a dark hue and is shaped into handsome blocks by the tools of the 
workmen. I was gratified to see such firm and massy walls, constructed 
of this stone ; indeed, in point of solidity and beauty, they would do 
honor to the modern wet docks of Great Britain. It is intended to have 
a lock at this place, where there is a considerable descent into the 
Hudson. 

" There is a village at Fort Edward bearing the same name, and I 
ought to have remarked that there are villages at Stillwater, Saratoga,' 
and Fort Miller; but there is nothing particularly interesting in any of 
them. Fort Edward, however, is memorable on account of its former 
importance. It is situated near the great bend of the Hudson, and 
formed the immediate connection with Lake George, which is sixteen 
miles, and with Lake Champlain, twenty-two miles distant. It was 
originally only an entrenched camp, but as its situation was important, 
it was soon converted into a regular fort. The walls appear to be, in 
some places, still twenty feet high, notwithstanding what time and the 
plow have done to reduce them ; for the interior of the Fort, and the 
parapet are now in some places, planted with potatoes. 

" In the last French War, it was an important station; and, in Gen, 
Burgoyne's campaign, it formed the medium of communication with 
Lake George, whence the provisions were brought forward for the use 
of the British Army, which was detained on this account at and near Fort 
Edward for six weeks — by which means, they lost the best part of the 
season for millitary operations ; and as they moved down the river they 
relinquished the connection with Fort Edward and Lake George, and 
were never able to recover it." 

After the French War, the fortification at Fort Edward became so 
dilapidated, that it was seldom occupied by any of the troops that were 

' Thi-i <l.ii-s n.it ref.-f. <<{ .our-ic, t" the present watering place of Saratoga Springs. 



56 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

from time to time stationed there. Canada being now conquered it 
was supposed that there would be no further use for it ; and accordingly, 
just before the Revolutionary War, a Dr. Smythe erected from the 
debris of the Fort, " The Red House," as it was called, for his dwelling. ' 
Burgoyne occupied this house as his headquarters when at this place. 

In closing the early history of this classic town — Fort Edward — it may 
be of interest to give the following very interesting incident, written 
by the late Jonathan Eastman of Concord, N. H., in regard to Bur- 
goyne, which is given at length in the " Memoirs of General Stark " 
published at Concord, N, H. in 1831. Eastman writes : 

"Just below Fort Edward, on the margin of a small brook, falling 
into the Hudson, the Americans^ discovered there three graves neatly 
turfed, and having at the head-boards the names of three British officers. 
In walking over them, they sounded hollow and upon digging, the 
soldiers discovered three fine bateaux each capable of containing fifty 
men. They were well covered with boards; and were intended by some 
of Burgoyne 's party to aid a retreat." 

It will be seen, however, by referring to the letter of General Riedesel 
(Burgoyne's German ally) published in vol. I of my Memoirs of that 
General, that Eastman is mistaken in thinking that these bateaux were 
designed to facilitate Burgoyne's retreat — an idea that the British 
General, when at Fort Edward, never for a moment entertained.^ The 
real object in burying these bateaux was to aid Col. Barry St. Leger 
in crossing the Hudson in case that through the failure of his expedition 
against Fort Stanwix, it should become necessary for him to retreat 
into Canada. In any event this precaution was useless, as St. Leger,, 
after his defeat by General Herkimer, retired into Canada by way of 
Oswego.^ 

1 This house is still (1900I standing m a fair state of preservation, near the five combined locks 
of the canal east of Sandy Hill. 

2 By " Americans," the writer refers to those troops under Stark who by a detour had taken 
possession of Fort Edward — thus aiding in surrounding Burgoyne and thus partly compelling him 
to surrender. This circumstance of the burial of the bateaux is referred to a page or two back. 

' "British never retreat" was what, it will be re.nembared, Burgoyne had pompously pro- 
claimed from Fort Edward. 

♦ See my " Burgoyne's Campaign and St. Leger's E.xpedition." 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 57 



CHAPTER VI. 

The French War Gontinukd — M\jor General Johnson's Campaion Aoainst 
THE French and his Defe:at of Baron Dieskau — The Moral and Physical 
Results of His Victory. 

The reader, after this long digression, may, perhaps, remember that 
in the beginning of the last chapter. Major General Johnson was on the 
eve of setting out from Albany — the rendezvous of the army — for Crown 
Point to take command of the fourth expedition which had been planned 
by Braddock and the Royal Governors at Alexandria. 

It had been the intention of Johnson to have gone forward at the 
same time as Gen. Lyman ; and he would have done so, had he not been 
detained by the leaky condition of the bateaux, and also b)^ difficulties 
which arose at this time between himself and Governor Shirley of Massa- 
chusetts, on account of the latter, in defiance of the wishes of Johnson, 
employing Col. Lydius at Fort Edward in Indian diplomacy. Before, 
therefore, Johnson could join his army, the dissensions sown among the 
Indians by Lydius must be healed. This caused a delay of several 
days ; and even then just as he had arranged everything, as he supposed 
to the satisfaction of the Six Nations, a deputation came to him on the 
eve of his departure, refusing to proceed with him farther, imtil matters 
had been explained to them more clearly. 

These difficulties having been finally adjusted, Johnson, upon the 8th 
of August, set out from Albany with the stores and artillery and — with 
the exception of the New York and Rhode Island militia, which were 
still behind— with the rest of the troops. He was also accompanied by 
King Hendrick with fifty Mohawk warriors, and also by the afterward 
celebrated Joseph Brant, then a mere lad of thirteen years. Upon his 
arrival at the Great Carrying- Place (Fort Edward) he was joined by two 
hundred more braves, thus increasing the number of his Indian allies 
to about two hundred and fifty. 

The General found the New England troops, already arrived at Fort 
Edward, burning with ardor and impatient of delay. The news of 
Braddock's defeat, far from disheartening, only made them the more 
desirous to be led against Crown Point. To them, this expedition 
was for the defence of their firesides?. " I endeavor to keep myself calm 
and quiet under our slow progress ai\d await God's time," wrote Thomas 



58 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

WillianivS, one of the Provincials, at this time to his wife.' But to them 
the advance was slow. Gen. Lyman felt eqnall}' restive under the delay. 
So much so, indeed, that before Johnson's arrival and after getting the 
building of Fort Edward well tmder way, he had set three hundred of 
his men at work cutting a road from Fort Edward to Fort Anne, 
supposing that the army would proceed against Crown Point by way 
of Wood Creek and Lake Champlain. Johnson, however, in view of a 
council of war, w-hich he proposed to call for the purpose of deciding 
upon the best route, countermanded the order, and sent out a scouting 
party of forty soldiers and three Indians to reconnoitre the w^hole 
ccimtry in that vicinity. The scouts having returned, a council was 
called on the 22nd, in which the officers upon hearing their report 
unamiously gave it as their opinion " that the road to Lake St. Sacra- 
ment [Lake George] appeared to them the most eligible, and that it 
ought to be immediately set about." It was also determined to send 
forward two thousand men to cut a road through the woods to the head 
of the Lake, and erect there suitable buildings in which to store arms 
and other munitions of war when they should arrive. 

Leaving General Lyman, therefore, at Fort Edward to await the 
arrival of the rest of the troops and the New Hampshire men to com- 
plete and garrison the Fort, Johnson set out on the 26th with thirty 
four hundred men for the Lake a distance of fourteen and a half miles — 
reaching it at diisk of the twenty-eighth. The position which he 
selected for his camp was a strong one, it being protected on the rear 
by the Lake, and on both flanks by a thickly wooded swamp. His first 
act on his arrival there, w^as to change the naine of the lake from 
St. Sacrament to Lake George,' "not only," as he loyally writes, '* in 
honor of his Majesty but to ascertain his undoubted dominion there." 
Although for man}^ years previously this lake had been used as a means 
of communication both for warlike and commercial purposes between 

' This same letter is given by the Historian, Parkman, in his " Montcahn and Wolfe " sent him 
by me— of which he gives due acknowledgement. 

'^ The ancient Indian name of this Lake was Andiatarocte — "there the lake shuts itself." The 
French Missionary Father Joques named it St. Sacrament ; not, as some suppose, Mr. Cooper 
among them— on account of the purity of its waters, but because he arrived at the Lake upon the 
eve of the festival day of that name. The early Roman Catholic discoverers frequently connect the 
discovery of places with the festival name in the calendar. ' lis auiverant, la ville du St. Sacra- 
ment, au bovit du lac qui est joint au grand lac de Champlain. Les Iroquois le nomment Andiat- 
arocte, comme qui disoir la ott lac le fertne. Le Pere le nomma le lac du St. Sacrament," Jesuit 
Relations 1645-6. Mr. Cooper in his Last 0/ the Mohicans suggests the name of Horicon for this lake 
after a tribe of Indians that resided near its banks. This, though qiiite poetical, is merely fanci- 
ful; as indeed he claims, and has not the merit of historic truth. 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 59 

Canada and Albany, yet Johnson fonnd a primeval forest where "no 
house was ever before bnilt, nor a spot of land cleared." The soldiers 
were immediately set to work clearing- a place for a camp of five 
thousand men, and providing shelter for the military stores. Mean- 
while Gen. Lyman, having- left at Ford Edward two hundred and fifty 
New England troops, and five companies from New York which had 
finally arrived, joined the camp at Lake George on the 3d of Septeinber, 
bringing with him all the heavy artillery. 

All now was activity in the Provincial Camp. Wagons laden with 
munitions of war came and went across the portage. The wild flowers 
of the forest were crushed beneath the rude tread of armed men. The 
noise of a hundred hammers echoed through the mountain fastnesses; 
while keel after keel cut the crystal waters of the Lake. By day, the 
French Mountain frowned defiantly at those by whom its repose had 
first been broken; and at night the panther from the neighboring 
thicket looked forth upon the stalwart forms reclining by the watch-fires. 
" Prayers," wrote Johnson, "have a good effect, especially among the 
New England men;" and on the vSabbath, while the Indians were 
reclining at a distance under the forest shade, or skimming the waters 
in their birchen canoes, the New England troops had gathered around 
the man of God,' to listen to his words of comfort, and to unite with 
him in supplication at the throne of the Most High. 

Johnson had expected to be joined at the Lake by many more war- 
riors of the Six Nations. In this he was disappointed. A few braves, 
it is true, dropped in at the camp, but by no means in the number 
which the Indians had assured him would come. The old Mohegan", 
Sachem, Hendrick, was mortified at the paucity of the number, and 
availed himself of a council, held on the 4th, to explain to Johnson and 
his officers why so few braves had joined his standard. This was the 
last formal speech that the great Mohawk Chieftain lived to make. 
True as tempered steel to the interests of the English — like Massasoit of 
early New England days his last moments were in harmony with those 
of his life — spent in keeping the Six Nations steadfast to their alliance. 
Although he was a rude brave of the forest, yet his noble appreciation 
of the public welfare, the more polished Governor of Massachusetts, 
Shirley, who had through jealousy, done every thing in his power to 
thwart Johnson, might well have imitated. 

' Rev. Stephen Williams of Long .Meadow, Mass, Chaplain of William's Regiment. 
' Hendrick was a Mohawk only by adoption. ' 



60 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

General Johnson's plan of operations was to build a fort at the head 
of the Lake, and to remain there until a sufficient number of bateaux 
could be constructed in which to transport his stores and artillery to 
Crown Point. As soon as those were in readiness, he designed to 
proceed down the Lake, with all his available forces to Ticonderoga, and 
there remain until strengthened by sufficient reinforcements, he could 
successfully attack Crown Point — the objective point of his expedition. 
Ticonderoga had long been considered by militar}^ men as a " ver}' 
dangerous and important pass;" audit was his design to construct on 
that promontory a fort which should command the only two water passes 
to the lower settlements. This movement was, therefore, well planned ; 
for if it should not be deemed advisable to attack Crown Point, the 
French could at least, be prevented from passing down either of the 
Lakes. The General was also the more anxious to proceed, from intelli- 
gence received through his scouts, that a small party of French had 
already occupied this important pass — really in this campaign, the 
Thermopylae of America. Before, however, his arrangements could 
be completed, the rapid movements of the eneiny foiled this well con- 
ceived design. 

Early in July, deVaudreiiil, the Governor of Canada, who was informed 
through papers taken from Braddock, of vShirley's proposed expedition 
against Niagara, arranged a well concerted attack upon Oswego. 
Learning, however, that the English were advancing by way of St. 
Sacrament (Lake (reorge) against Crown Point, he changed his pur- 
pose; and, calling back the troops already on their way to Oswego, 
sent them, under Baron Dieskau, to meet the forces of Gen. Johnson. 
Leaving a large force at Crown Point, the Baron took six hundred 
Indians, seven hundred Canadians, and two hundred regulars and pro- 
ceeding up Lake Champlain, landed at the head of that Lake — South 
Bay, now Whitehall.' The intention of the French General was first 
to attack Fort Edward, and then to cut off the retreat of Johnson and 
annihilate his army. This accomplished, Albany and the lower settle- 
ments, and, perhaps even New York, were to be destroyed. This plan 
was in harmony with the motto upon the Baron's arms " Boldness 
Wins;" and though it was brilliant it was also rash. 

On the evening of the fourth day after disembarking at South Bay, 
the French Army found itself through the treacherj' of his Iroquois 
guides, on the road to Lake George, foiir miles distant from Fort 

' The Indian name of Whitehall was Kak-cno-quate-na — "The place where dip fish." 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 61 

Edward. Here the Baron halted and sent forward a party of Indians 
under St. Pierre to reconnoiter. They soon retiirned having killed a 
courier whom Gen. Johnson had sent to warn the garrison at Fort 
Edward of their danger. As it was evident from this, that the com- 
mander of the Fort was now on the alert, Dieskau gave the Indians the 
choice either of attacking the fort or marching against the camp at the 
Lake. The Indians, who had a peculiar horror of artillery, having 
learned through a prisoner that the camp at the Lake was destitute of 
cannon, positively refused to attack the fort, but expressed their 
willingness to be led against the latter. Those of the Iroquois, also, 
who were with Dieskau, having been beguiled from their allegiance to 
the British Crown by le \'audreuil, also refused because Fort Edward, 
they said, was on English soil. Having thus ascertained the disposition 
of his Indian allies, the French General gave up, for the present, his 
original design ; and marching through the forest in the northerly part 
of the present towns of Kingsbury and Queensbury, encamped on the 
margin of a small pond on the east of the Lake George road, and near 
the northern spur of the French Mountain. 

On the evening of the 7th of vSeptember, Johnson was apprized 
through scouts, that a road had been cut from vSouth Bay, and that a 
large body of men were marching to the Hudson. The General 
immediately sent expresses to New York and New England for rein- 
forcements, and at the same time dispatched two messengers to Fort 
Edward to warn Col. Blanchard of the advance of the French army. 
One of these couriers, was, as has been stated, intercepted and killed, 
but the other returned at midnight, bringing the startling intelligence 
that the enemy were only four miles from the Fort. A council of war 
was called early the next morning, in which it was the general opinion 
of both officers and Indians that a detachment of one thousand troops 
and two hundred Indians should be sent out in aid of Fort Edward "to 
catch the enemy in their retreat, either as victors or as defeated in their 
design." Hendrick, alone, disapproved of the number. "If," said 
that sage counsellor, " they are to fight they are too few; if they are 
to be killed they are too many;" and again, when it was proposed to 
send out the detachment in three parties, the Mohaw^k Chieftain, pick- 
ing up three sticks from the ground, said "Put these together and you 
cannot break them; take them one by one, and you wall do it easily." 
His advice, however, on both points was disregarded; and the Pro- 
vincials, under the gallant Col. Ephraim Williams, and the confede- 



62 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

rate warriors led by the venerable Mohawk brave, set out without 
delay in three divisions, and marched toward the Fort, where it was 
supposed the enemy would be found. As soon as they left the camp,. 
Johnson had some trees felled to form, with the wagons and bateaux, 
a rude breastwork; and at the same time, some heavy cannon, destined 
for the attack on Crown Point, were drawn up from the shore of the 
Lake and posted in advantageous positions. 

Meanwhile, Dieskau, advised through his Indian scouts of the advance 
of Col. Williams, arranged in a defile near at hand an ambuscade in the 
shape of a crescent ; the regulars being stationed in the centre, and the 
Canadians and Indians on either side where they were concealed on the 
right by thickets, and on the left by rocks and trees. 

Col. Williams advanced with his division to Rocky Brook, about two 
miles from the camp, and halted until he should be overtaken by Lieut. 
Whiting and Hendrick with the rest of the party. As soon as they 
came up, the Colonel, singularly, unsuspicious of danger, and neglecting 
his usual precaution of throwing ahead skirmishers; gave the order to 
advance ; and the entire column preceded by Hendrick and his warriors, 
marched briskly forward and entered the fatal defile. It had been the 
express orders of Dieskau that his men should reserve their fire until 
the English were entirely within the half-circle. Fortunately, however, 
before the detachment were wholly within the ambush, one of Dieskau's 
Iroquois, relenting, fired a musket purposely to warn the Mohawks of 
their danger under Hendrick.' Instantly, terriffic yells and rattling 
of musketry filled the air, as volley after volley was poured with murder- 
ous effect upon the left of Williams' column, and upon the Indians in 
front. Hendrick, who was in advance of his braves, and who being 
corpulent and mounted on horseback, formed a conspicuous mark for 
the enemy's bullets, fell dead at the first fire. Col. Williams was also 
killed in the early part of the action, being shot through the head as he 
was standing upon a huge boulder which he had mounted the better to 
direct the movements of his men." A hurried retreat of the Provincials 

1 Statement by Dieskaic himself. Other accounts say that the gun was accidently discharged. 

'^ Two of Col. Williams' companions immediately concealed the body from the scalp-knives of 
the advancing Indians, and it was found after the battle unmutilated and was buried some twenty 
rods southeast of where he fell at the foot of a huge pine beside the militarj' road. In 1835, his 
nephew, Dr. W. H. Williams of Raleigh, N. C, dissinterred and carried off the skull. The boulder 
on which Col. Williams fell is now surmounted by a Marble Monviment, twelve feet high, erected 
by the alumni ol Williams' College, and bears appropriate inscriptions on each of its sides. It is 
a pity that steps have not been taken to mark also with a monuinent the place where the great 
Mohegan, Hendrick, fell. Certainly his memory is in every respect worthy of being thus com- 
memorated. 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 6:5 

tiow followed, with the enemy close on their heels, alternately yelling- 
and firing-. Reaching a small pond' near the road, a portion of the 
Provincials rallied, and stationing themselves behind it, each man for 
himself, checked the pursuit until the arrival of Lieut. Col. Cole, whom 
Johnson, as soon as he heard the firing had sent out with three hundred 
men to cover the retreat. Under the guidance of Whiting and Cole 
this was successfully effected ; and the party, which a little while before 
had gone forth confident in their strength clambered over the barricades 
of Johnson's camp, weary and dejected. 

Had the French commander been able as he intended to have taken 
advantage of the confusion produced in Johnson's camp by the arrival 
of the panic stricken fugitives, and, while his men were flushed with 
success rushed forward and carried the breastw^orks by storm, he would 
doubtless have been successful. But the Indians and Canadians, coming 
in sight of Johnson's cannon, halted and finally skulked off to the edge 
of the woods leaving the regulars to begin the attack. This delay lost 
the Baron the victory, and gaA^e the Provinclials full fifteen minutes in 
which to improve their defences, and recover from their previous 
trepidation. 

The attack was begun by the regulars who advanced in perfect order 
against the center, firing by platoons. As their polished arms were 
first discovered advancing from the woods, a slight tremor seized the 
Provincials, but after the first few volleys they lost all fear and fought 
with coolness and desperation '-' Finding that no impression could be 
made upon the centre, Dieskau changed his attack to the left but with 
no better effect. He next attempted to turn Johnson's right where were 
stationed the regiments of Ruggles, Titcomb and the late Col. Williams. 
A terrific fight followed; both parties feeling that the issue of the 

> Since called Bloody Pond, from the tradition that many of those slam in this skirmish were 
thrown into it— though. Dr. Fitch disputes this and ascribes the origin of the name to the circum- 
stances that such numbers here fell dead into and along the pond that the brook issuing from it 
was the following morning seen to be discolored with blood for some distance below. Both reasons 
may be correct. The pond which is nearly circular and is generally covered in their seanon with 
the pond lily, is probably much smaller than formerly. In 1825, the skeleton of a man was dug up 
from the depth of ij^ feet at a spot near the Pond which very likely was at the time of the battle 
covered with water. Clo.se to the skeleton there were found a marble pipe, and some silver eyed 
buttf)ns bearing the royal stamp. This pipe may have been bought of an Indian; as I have a 
similar one of marble in my collection, made by the early aboriginals. 

2 Joseph Brant, in relating the particulars of this bloody fight to Dr. Stewart, acknowledged 
that this being his first action at which he was present, he was .seiz-ed with such a tremor when the 
firing began, that he was obliged to take hold of a small sapling to steady himself; but that, after 
the discharge of a few volleys, he recovered the use of his limbs and the composure of his niind so 
as to support the character of a brave man, of which he was e.\ceedingly ambitious. 



64 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

struggle had now arrived. In the words of an officer present, " there 
seemed nothing but thunder and lightning and perpetual pillars of 
smoke, and the bullets flew like hail-stones." The Provincials, said 
Dieskau after the battle, " fought like devils;" and, in some instances 
leaping over the breastworks, and clubbing their arms they fought hand 
to hand and face to face. Finally, the old fashioned musket, in the 
hands of the New England farmers, proving superior to the glittering 
bayonet, the regulars were again driven back leaving the ground 
covered with their dead and wounded. During this attack upon the 
right, a party of Abenakis and Canadians posting them.selves in a 
morass', for a time made considerable havoc, but a few shells thrown 
among them scattered that tribe in the greatest confusion. Thus driven 
back at all points, the enemy began to waver, which was no sooner 
perceived by the Provincials, than leaping over their defences with a 
loud shout, they fought them until the Lake became red as the crimson 
flowers that still blossom upon its margin." 

This fierce onset decided the day ; and the French breaking their ranks, 
sought in wild disorder the cover of the woods. The French suffered 
little in this action from the artillery, which, aimed generally too high, 
did but small execution — except, by the crashing of the balls in the 
tree tops, to scare the Indians. All the credit is due to the personal 
valor of the soldiers and officers themselves. 

In this battle almost all the French regulars were killed. Dieskau, 
although he had received three balls in his legs and one across his knee 
while fighting close to the barricades," refused to leave the field; and 
supported by the stump of a tree, continued amid the whistling of 
biillets, calmly to give his orders. Finally, as his troops were about to 
retreat, a renegade Frenchman maliciously discharged his musket 
through both of the Baron's hips, inflicting a very severe wound. 

1 The summer visitor to the Fort William Hotel at Caldwell, Lake George, can easily recognize 
this morass at the present day. 

2 The Lnbelia Cardenalis^ commonly called the Indian Eye Bright. The author has frequently 
seen and gathered large clusters of this beautiful blossom, growing on the banks of Lake George 
and Bloody Pond. The late Alfred B. Street has embalmed this flower in a touching Indian legend, 
in his entertaining Woods and IVaters. 

3 I am reminded by this circumstance of a remark which my friend, Hon. C. C. Lester, made 
lately while looking at Trumbull's paintings of the Death of Montgomery at Quebec, and Warren 
at Bunker Hill, in my library,— that the mode of fighting in those days was very different from that 
of the present — where the General commanding, at a good and safe distance from the scene of con- 
flict, directs with his spy-glass from a far off eminence the movements of his troops. Indeed, this 
change was noticable even in the time of Napoleon the Great. Who ever knew of him, except in 
his earliest campaign in Italy under the " Directory," to expose his precious body to danger ! 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 65 

Lient. Col. Pommeroy, coming- up at this moment, the Baron was, by 
his orders, conveyed by eight men in a blanket to the tent of the American 
commander, where he received every attention due to a brave but unfortu- 
nate man — Gen. Johnson refusing to have his own wounds dressed until 
those of his late opponent had been properly attended to. ' Le Gardeur 
de St. Pierre, the same officer who had defeated Washington the 
previous year on the Ohio, received his death woimd in the skirmish of 
the morning. His last words were: "fight on boys, this is Johnson, not 
Braddock .'" 

In the beginning of the action, Gen. Johnson "displayed a firm and 
steady mind," and conducted himself with great bravery; but soon 
receiving a painful wound in the hips, he was forced to retire, leaving 
the command to Maj.-Geri. Lyman. During all of the fight which 
lasted from half -past ten in the morning until four in the afternoon, 
Lyman behaved with distinguished bravery ; repeatedly showing himself 
in front of the defences in order to encourage his men; and yet, will it 
be credited when it is stated that Lyman lingered only a few 3^ears in 
poverty and disappointment and died without receiving even the notice 
of the British Government ! Still, in our day, instances of similar 
ingratitude have been known even by republics — though it has become 
a common saying that even " Republics are ungrateful." 

The misfortunes of the enemy were not, however, at an end. Toward 
evening of the same da}', as the shattered remnants of the French 
army were seated near Rocky Brook, refreshing themselves after the 
late exhaustive battle, they were suddenly attacked by a party of two 
hundred New Hampshire troops under Capt. Maginnis, who were on 
their way to Lake George from Fort Edward, and completely routed, 
leaving, in the words of an eye witness, " their garments and weapons of 
war for miles together like the Assayrians in their flight." The brave 

1 Too much cannot be said in praise of Dicskau. He was morally a.s great as he was brave_ 
He remained a short time, while recuperating from his wounds, as the guest of Oen. Schuyler at 
Albany. Before he left America a warm friendship sprang up between him.self and his conqueror, 
and previously to his returning to France he presented Johnson with a magnificent sword as a 
token of his regard. Johnson acknowledged this gift in a feeling letter to the Baron which MS. 
letter is in my possession— and if space permitted I would here give it at length. " I know not 
what at present will be my fate," wrote Dieskau to Count D'Argenson, Sept. 14, 1755. "From 
M. de Johnson, the General of the English army, I am receiving all the attention possible to 
be expected from a brave man, full of honor and feeling." The French Government entertained, 
notwithstanding his defeat, a high idea of his services. It gave him 12,000 livres as Major- 
(ieneral, 25,000 more as commander of the forces in America, and a retaining pension of 4,000. 
Dieskau died in 1767, in France, the ultimate consequence of his wounds received in this action. 

[8] 



66 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mao-innis, ho^vever, received a contusion on the head from a spent 
bullet, and died soon after reaching- the camp. 

The bodies of those slain in this skirmish were buried in the bottom 
of the glen, beneath the shadow of everlasting rocks. It is a sweet, 
wild haunt, — the sunbeam falls there with a softened radiance — and a 
brook near by murmers plaintively as if mourning for the dead. 

In the three actions of the day, about two hundred and twenty of the 
Provincials were killed, and ninety- one wounded. Their loss was 
greater than it might otherwise have been, from the fact that several 
were hit by poisoned bullets rolled up in copper and yellow arsenic — thus 
mere flesh wounds soon mortified, some of the soldiers dying in convul- 
sions. ' Of the vSix Nations forty of their braves perished. 

[The following letter, written by Abigail Dwight, a .si.ster of Col. Ephraim and Surgeon Thomas 
Williams (an extract of whose letter has just been quoted) to an intimate friend Abraham Bockee, 
then a shop-keeper in New York City, has recently been unearthed fnom a mass of MS. letters, by 
his great, great, grand daughter. Martha Bockee Flint. As this letter throws much light upon the 
politics of the campaign of 1755, and, withal, brings the reader into intimate relations with two of 
the principal actors in those scenes. I give it nearly in its entirety. The fact is, also, that so far 
as I know, this is the only pri^rate letter extant describing the battle; and therefore, it is of superla- 
tive value.] 

Stockbridge, loNovemr. , 1755. 

Dear Sir: 

It is l<Hig- .since I received your kind favour of Septemr. Wee of ottr mournful 
afflicted family have Ben plunged into such a depth of Sorrow from ye late Sad Ca- 
tastrophy at Lake George yt could scarcely attend to anything but Lamentation and 
Weeping. My Eldest Brother, Coll : Ephraim Williams was among ye slain as 3-011 
have doubtless heard. He was a most Generous, pleasant Charming man, admired 
and loved by all yt knew him ; from his universall acquaintance with ye world, having 
Travilled 3 j-ears abroad into all nations, and his great experience in commercial 
affairs. 

He was chosen for one of ye Principal Officers to conduct our Crownpoint Expe- 
dition. But allass, in front of Batall He must Be one of ye first men yt fell. Ye will 
of God is done and wee must Submit. Many Genmen are pleased to Say not one Man 
in the whole Army could have been so Great a Loss.- He was sent out with ye Com- 
mand of Seven or eight Hundred Men. About eight o'clock, having marched about 
four miles from ye camp met ye french Army and at yt tmhappy Spot they had a 
severe engagement and my poor Broi" fell. Poor Bror Siah was an Ensign in his 
Regement & Happened to be about ve Distance of vSeven rods abreast. Took a tree 

1 " Michael Harrington died of the wound he received through the fleshy part of the thigh, the 
ball undoubtedly poisoned; as also one Johnathan Burt of Brimfield bj' a poisoned ball through the 
man could cot stop the mortification which .seized the wounded part, and presently, a few hours 
arm; and one Brisbee, by a slight shot in the leg which threw him into convulsions. The art of 
shut up the scene. Oh cursed malice, that the fatal lead should not be thought sufficient without 
being rolled up with a solution of copper and yellow arsenic, as I am thoughtful was the case, by 
many of the poisoned balls which were brought in out of their bullet-pouches, taken among the 
plunder. MS. letter in my possession, .Surgeon Thomas Williams to his wife. This is the onlv 
instance that 1 recollect of tlie use of poisoned bullets in battle. 



ABIGAIL DWIGHT'S LETTER. 67 

to stand his Ground Agreeable to yee Orders. Discharged his gun at an Indian about 
5 rod before him which took his Life. He fell and yelled. My Brother squat to 
Charge before he retreated & as he was throwing in his Powder he Receivd a shot 
from one of ye Savages who flanked him, into his Right thigh Ye Ball came out at his 
Left Buttock cut of ye String of his Bladder in passing through his Body. Imedeately 
saw from whence came ye Shot, ye Savage running toward him with his hatchet. He 
instantly started and run about j4 a mile, life failing crept into a Hole made By two 
trees Blown up by ye roots. Lay in Water until he was a little Revived, saw his 
blood so thick where he went in yt. he Expected to be followed for his Scalpe. 

When ye Retreate had passed him took Courage and went out & as one and 
another was retreating without Wounds sometimes got a little help by hanging to 
men's Shoulders. Sometimes when All left him, as was ye case several times, he 
crawled along himself till at length was quite spent & for saken by All his fleeing 
friends. Giving over Hopes of Deliverance there came by a young mohawk in his 
Retreat, offered his Back, took him up & run near a quarter of a mile with him into 
ye camp. So marvellous a wonder was his Escape from ye jawes of ye Devourer. 

Well, now his life was almost gone, ye enemy almost upon ye Camp, ye Battal 
come on & long as it lasted no care could be had for ye wounded. But all things are 
ordered in Wisdom. My Second Brother, Doct Thomas Williams being ye Chief 
Surgion of ye Regement, took a most Special Care, provided ye Best Attendance for 
a long time. Yet he was looked upon as past all Hope & Helpe. His wound mortified 
&' much flesh cut out of it. After all as Divine Providence would have it. by Degrees 
he mended and got Home in a Horse litter and Yesterday Sat upright in his Chair 
some minites. Sends his Kind love to your self and Mrs. Bockee. 

So bad a Wound perhaps one in lo thousand was never cured. And all soe ye 
poor Distressed army Held there in Sickness, Die by loods & not Discharged. Held 
and Nothing Done, and all ye World with Half an Eye must know Nothing can be 
Done at this Advanced Season, and ye first Plan it was Plain as ye Sun in ye fairest 
day, as Soon as Braddock was defeated yt ye Crownpoint Army would have all 
Canada to fight, and with ye Savages and Regulars could make 25,000 men and 
would Do it at any Expense rather than have ye finest Key and Dore to their whole 
Country cut oflf ye Hinges and for us to Desire it ye vast expense of Money and what 
is Infinitely Better, Blood in such wicked Profusion, is not only sorded cruelty. But 
ye most redikelous and unjustifiable Murder of our Selves. 

Suppossing we had Got it under ye greatest possible Desadvantages with ye loss 
of thousands of precious lives, and no other point saved, what advantage could it be 
to us? Why not a single farthing, for it is impossable we could Keep it against their 
whole country's water carrage for ye conveyance of all their strength Both men and 
Artilery which comes as easy as a freight from you to Albany, & What can we do 
toward Supporting our Selves there if we had ye Po.ssession of it this Winter when 
we can hardly keep the Army at Lake George with 6 days provision Beforehand 
when we had ye rest of ye year and ye Summer to carry it in. If they Demolished 
it ye French could in one month's time Build it again. Upon ye whole, it looks as 
if our Councils were darkened. Wisdom in a remarkable manner hid from those yt 
should be wise. 

When there is a Plan laid with a rational prospekt yt can succeed against ye 
french, wee shall probably see a War declared— ye whole Country of Canada in ye 



68 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

severall Dispersions of it attackt at once. Then their .strength will Be Divided, their 
Provision will serve for our Supplies and not ye first Army cut off before ye second 
can possibly Be in Readiness to make an attack and wee shall have men found yt 
shall chuse to fight ye common Enemy rather than their own men or ye trees, & 
wont Be Sacraficed to serve no purpose except to prepare a lazy camp with a Generll 
yt would contentedly lye by without Business for 20 days & never order so much as 
an Intrenchment throwed up to cover every Mans Body in case of Battals ye work of 
20 minits or very Little more, and then its Hopeful we shall have an Engineer yt 
rather chuses to Levil his cannon to answer Battal & not at trees 20 foot from the 
ground at a time when firewood was not wanted & a gunner should perceive ye mis- 
take. He would not be offered ye sword if he opened his mouth. 

But allass my good friend, time fails me and I know Ive tired your patience. 
You will know by a Little what a great Deal meians, its ye universal opinion of our 
wise genm. this way yt. wee have lost at Lake George more than wee have gained. 
We know of Little gain. But we know yt. wee have lost a nr. of Brave, Valient 
ofificers and men Equil in all respects to any we have taken — men whose country 
can't for another campaign furnish their Equils. A major under my Dear Brother. 3 
captns. and sundry Leftns, 1 knew personally. All Died with him in Battal. 
Some of ye Best Men for Courage and Conduct & cant be mourned to much. I 
find By your New.spapers you know but Little of ye Matter as it really stands. 

* * * * 

I conclude with great Esteem your very obliged afflicted friend &- very Humble 
servent Abigail Dwight. 

The loss of the French was between three and four hundred. 

The months of October and November were chiefly occupied in build- 
ing a strong- fort at the head of the Lake. A fortification at this point 
was rightly considered by Johnson extremely important as it would thus 
command the passage into Canada by way of Fort Edward and Lake 
George in the same way as Fort Anne commanded the one by way of 
Wood Creek. Its importance had also been seen by the Lieut. -Governor 
of New York, who, in the preceding year had urged the erection of a 
fort at the southern extremity of St. vSacrament on the ground that it 
would be a defense against the French and a protection for the Mohawks. 
A council of war held at the camp, on the 7th of September, had 
recommended the expediency of building a small picketed fort without 
delay. This was opposed by the General who thought that a strong 
fortification should be constructed capable of holding, in an emergency, 
five hundred men. He, however, yielded to the will of the majority, 
and a fort was begun, which went on so slowly that by the last of 
September it was not nearly completed; only a dozen men at one time 
being found by Johnson engaged on the work. 

On the 29th, advices were received from Sir Charles Hardy, the new 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 69 

Governor of New York, stating- that it was the wish of himself and his 
Majesty's Council that a durable and commodious fort should be con- 
structed as soon as possible. Upon this wish being communicated to a 
council of war it was immediately decided to erect a fort which should 
meet his views. The General, accordingly, sent to Fort Edward for 
all the shovels and spades which the officer at that post could spare, and 
the fort was forthwith begun. The work, however, did noL progress 
so rapidly as Johnson desired. "The fort,"' he writes on the 7th of 
October, " goes on, all things considered, pretty well.''' On September 
15th, there was an unusual muster of troops in Massachusetts to rein- 
force Johnson: ' Hence, the New England men knowing that they were 
•expected to proceed, and therefore, the more impatient to carry out the 
wishes of their friends at home, and not seeing the necessity of a fort, 
did not enter into the work with alacrity. It was using their services, they 
selfishly thought, solely for the benefit of New York — not perceiving 
that a fort at this place, which would hold the French in check, was as 
much needed for the protection of their own frontiers as for those of 
their sister Province. The work, therefoi'e, lingered along, and it was 
not until the middle of November, that the fort was completed receiving 
from Johnson the name of William Henry, in honor of two Princes of 
the Royal blood." 

But little more was accomplished during the remainder of the 
campaign. Scouting parties, it is true, under Captain Rogers, the 
famous ranger, amused themselves with surprises upon the enemy, 
often executing them so adroitly that many of the French in the vicinity 
of Fort Frederick (Ticonderoga) bit the dust — one Frenchman being 
taken and scalped under the very wall of that Fort. ' It was now, 
however, late in the autumn; and a council of war having decided on the 
28th of November, that it was too late in the season to proceed farther 
with the expedition, the General disbanded his army; and leaving six 

■ See an old Almanac for 1755, owned bv Rev. Samuel Townsend. 

2 Mr. Bancroft, I think, is mistaken in calling this a ' useless fort of wood." It was successful!}- 
defended in the spring of 1757 (as we shall see further on) against a force of two thousand troops, 
supplied with three hundred scaling ladders and it was only captured the succeeding summer 
(1758) by the abject cowardice of Gen. Webb. While it was not, of course, a fortification of the 
first or, perhaps, second class, it was far from " uscliss." 

3 A full and detailed account of this raid, as well as others of a similar character, will be given 
in a future chapter. 



70 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

hundred men to garrison the Fort, resigned his commission, and returned 
in the middle of December to his home at Mount Johnson.' 

In the conduct of this campaign, Gen. Johnson has been severely 
censured in two particulars: first, in not following up the routed army 
of Dieskau. and thus preventing its escape down Lake'Champlain; and 
secondly, that instead of boldly advancing against Crown- Point, he 
allowed the autumn to pass away in comparative inactivity, contenting 
himself in constructing a " useless fort." 

Regarding the first of these charges, there can be no question, that 
in not following up the French army, the General committed a grave 
blunder by allowing his caution to prevail over the better judgment of 
his officers. Gen. Lyman begged, that with his men flushed with recent 
victory and anxious for the pursuit, he might be sent after the enemy. 
The reply given to him by the General — " that he had reason to expect 
a renewal of the attack, and that it would be dangerous to weaken the 
main bodv of the army by sending out detachments to scour the country, " 
is not suiificient to justify his refusal of Lyman's request. Exhausted 
and dispirited as the enemy were, they were in no condition to have 
made a successful defence, much less to have resumed the aggressive ; 
and the probability is that if Gen. Lyman's suggestion had been followed, 
the gates of Fort Frederick never would have opened to receive the 
broken and dejected ranks of Dieskau's army. 

Respecting the second and more serious of these criticisms, however. 
Gen. Johnson is not so culpable as may at first appear. It was well 
known to the General, both through scouts which he had dispatched 
for that purpose, and the Baron's captured papers, that Crown-Point 
was heavily garrisoned, and that at Ticonderoga strong breastworks 
had been thrown up. The experience, moreover, of the last engage- 
ment had shown him how dif^cult it was for even thoroughly trained 
troops to capture rude and hastily constructed defences ; and he therefore 
verj' wisely hesitated before attacking, with raw and undisciplined 
militia, breastworks which had been carefully put up, and which were 
defended by regulars, trained under the best Generals of Europe.^ In 
addition to this, the artillery of the enemy which on the first movement 

1 About a mile west of Amsterdam. The house is still (18991 standing and is plainly visible to 
the passenger as he passes by on the N. Y. C. R. R. 

2 The experience of Abercrombie, in 1758, in attacking the breastworks erected by Montcalm, 
at Ticonderoga (an account of which will be given in its proper place) and also the battle of Bunker 
Hill, twenty-five years afterwards, show that Johnson did well to hesitate. 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 71 

<l()wn the Lake could be easily and with comparative celerity transported 
down the Lake from Crown- Point to Ticonderoga, was such as to make 
an attack hazardous in the extreme, unless with a very strong army of 
disciplined troops, and with a sufficient supply of heavy ordnance, 
neither of which Johnson possessed. He, also, was greatly hampered 
by the remissness of contractors, whom no exertions on his part could 
stimulate into activity ; and all he could do under these untoward circum- 
stances, was to emyloy his men in constructing a fort (which it will be 
remembered, he had been ordered to erect by the New York Assembly) 
hoping by this course to prevent any insubordination that might arise 
through idleness. He was, also, unwilling to have his retreat cut off 
by way of South Bay (Whitehall) and Wood Creek, in case he was un- 
successful, by not having an open communication with Fort Edward 
and Albany. Boldness, alone, does not always constitute good general- 
ship; and he who neglects to provide for every foreseen contingency, is 
deficient in the first requisite of a good general. 

Although General Johnson, owing to causes over which he had no 
control, failed in the original object of the expedition, yet his services 
in making one of the four expeditions planned at Alexandria only 
partially successful, were appreciated both by the Crown and by the 
people of his own Province — the former creating him in November a 
Baronet of Great Britain, and the latter greeting him with an illumina- 
tion and a triumphal procession on his arrival at New York on the last of 
December. ' Parliament, also voted him its thanks for his victory, 
together with the handsome sum of ^^5000. 

The action of the 8th of September, 1755, so far as concerns the 
number of men engaged, was not a great battle; but when viewed in 
its immediate strategical results, it well deserves a prominent place 
among the battles of American history. The late Rev. Cortlandt Van 
Rensselaer thus eloquently sums up its results. 

"I. The battle of Lake George is memorable in defeating a well 
laid, dangerous scheme of the enemy and in saving the Province from 
scenes of bloodshed and desolation. If Dieskau had succeeded in over- 
throwing Johnson in his entrenchments, his advance upon Fort Edward 
would have been easily successful, and thence his march to Albany 
[and to New York] would have been triumphant. Old Hendrick, at the 
convention of the preceding year [at Albany when Franklin and the 

1 It is to be presumed that for that day ifroni all accounts) this was fully equal to the late 
• Dewev Celebration" in New York Citv 1 



n WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

Royal Governors were present] had warned the Province of its danger. 
"Yon are without any fortifications," said he. "It is bnt a step from 
Canada hither, and the French may easily come and turn you out of 
doors." The conflagration of our Northern vSettlements would have 
been followed by the desolation of Albany and vSchenectady; and 
although Dieskau must have soon been compelled to retreat, it is 
impossible to estimate the bloodshed, plunder and general losses which 
might have taken place. God's Providence was on our side. The 
victory of Lake George undoubtedly rescued the Province from injury 
and woe beyond computation; considered, therefore, in its strategical 
results, the battle was one of the important engagements in American 
history. 

" II. The battle of Lake George is remarkable for its influence in 
rallying the spirit of the American Colonies. Much had been expected 
from the three expeditions sent against the French; but disappointment 
and sorrow had already followed Braddock's terrible defeat. It was 
more than the moaning of the forest pine in the ears of the solitary 
traveller; it was the blaze of lighting falling upon the mountain oak in 
his very path, followed by the crash of thunder; all the Provinces were 
amazed, awe-struck, paralyzed for a time; but recovering from the first 
shock of the calamity, they were aroused to avenge their loss. Their 
hopes were turned to Lake George, and not in vain. Johnson's victory 
was received as the precursor of a recovered -military position and fame, 
and was hailed as the means of deliverance from a bold and cruel foe. 
Few^ battles ever produced more immediate results in rekindling military 
and martial enthusiasm. Not only were the Colonies filled with rejoic- 
ing, but the influence of the triumph went over to England; and the 
deeds of our fathers at the camp of Lake George became familiar to the 
ears of Royalty and were applauded by the eloquence of Parliament. 
The moral effects of a battle in which the forces arrayed against each 
other were comparatively small have rarely been greater in the whole 
range of military annals. 

"III. Viewed simply in a military aspect, the Battle of Lake George 
was the only successful achievement zcithin the Thirteen Colonies during 
the campaign of IJSS- Braddock's defeat on the Monongahela, and 
Shirley's retreat from Oswego, brought ruin upon the expeditions 
framed for the reduction of Forts Duquesne and Niagara. Although the 
Northern Expedition failed in its object of reducing Fort Frederick, it 
had a show of glory in the brilliant success of a hard fought battle. 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 73 

Success in one direction often overbalances disappointment in another. 
The victory of General Johnson was the great event of the campaign of 
1755, solitary in the honors of its military triumph, and shining out, 
bright as brass, from the clouds of night. 

' ' IV. The victory of Lake George occurred in a series of campaigns 
that ended in tlie conquest of Canada and of tJie l^allcy of the Great West. 
Here in the forest, was the base of a line of operations on which were 
wrought out great problems of war. The mountains of the Lake were 
landmarks to conduct our armies from summit to summit of achieve- 
ment, until, passing on all barriers, they found their resting place in 
the Valley of the St. Lawrence and the Mississippi. Unknown results 
of territorial acquisition and of political and religious destiny lay con- 
cealed in the expedition which started for the capture of a single fort 
on Lake Champlain, and for the defence of the limited boundary line 
of a Province. * * * "Yhe American victory of Lake George was not 
an isolated item of our campaign. It was more than a simple triumph 
in an unbroken wilderness — a military achievement of the New York 
and New England yeomanry. It headed a series of successes that 
were followed by the gain of Kingdoms. It heralded the deliverance 
from French aggressions and agitations. * * * Johnson's victory 
had a true influence of relation to this end. As the southern inlet near 
Fort George joins itself to the Lake, whose waters flow to the north, 
and, tossed over cascades and waterfalls, pass into the St. Lawrence, so 
the expedition of 1755, identifying itself with a vast expanse of agencies, 
pressed forward over the rocks and reverses of campaigns, into Canada. 
But Canada was only a part of the great acquisitions of the war. The 
whole northwest was wrested from France, together with the Valley of 
the Mississippi lying easterly of that river, with the exception of the 
the Island of Orleans. 

" V. The battle of Lake George was furthermore memorable in its 
suggestions of Provincial Princess, and its lessons of zvarfare to the 
Colonies preparatory to their Independence. The battle was fought by 
Provincial troops and chiefly by the hardy sons of glorious New 
England. The veteran regulars of Old England had been beaten in 
the forests of Western Pennsylvania, or remained inactive in the 
Niagara expedition. Through some unaccountable cause, the expedi- 
tion, which was on the direct line of Canada, and nearest to the French 
reinforcements, known to be at hand, was consigned to the exclusive 

[9] 



74 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITwS HISTORY. 

care of native Colonial soldiers; and braveh^ did they do their duty; 
and in this battle and in this war, the Colonies practically learned the 
value of union and the unconquerable energies of a free people." 



CHAPTER VII. 



The Winter of 1756-7 Passes with no Concerted Action on thk Part ok the 
English Against the Enemy — Raids of Roger.s, Stark and Putnam — Attack 
OK THE French Ui'on Fort William Henry — Defeat of ihk Enemy and 
Their Retreat. 

The winter of 1756-57 wore away in gloomy inactivity; its repose 
being unbroken save by the sending out of scouting parties occasionally 
to watch the movements of the enemy in the vicinity of Fort St. Fred- 
erick (Ticonderoga) and Crown- Point. Some of these parties, under the 
command of Captain Rogers of the New Hampshire regiment and Cap- 
tain Israel Putnam of Connecticut, went directly down Lake George; 
others, under Stark, ranging the forests in the vicinity of Fort Anne, 
Dresden and Putnam. Serving under Putnam at this time was a cer- 
tain Lieutenant Noah Grant, said to have been the great-grandfather of 
President U. S. Grant, but on what reputable authority this statement 
is made, I know not. The expedition against Ticonderoga, owing to 
the unusual mildness of the season, was given up, and the French were 
left for some months to inature their plans of conquest unmolested. 

Meanwhile, another plan was put on foot for the capture of Crown- 
Point. With this view, some six thousand men were raised by New 
York and New England and placed under the command of Gen. Seth 
Winslow, who, notwithstanding his lamentable failures, hitherto, seems 
to have retained the public confidence. At Fort Edward Winslow was 
joined by that imbecile, Gen. James Abercromby, ' who brought with 
him a body of British regulars. The army7 thus gathered, accomplished 
nothing except to march to Fort William Henry, and thence back to 
Albany. This barren result was, however, somewhat redeemed by, as 
.iisiial, a Provincial officer. 

• Not AbeiXTombie as it is .i<enerally spelled, as is seen by a IMS. letter ot" his in inv possession. 



THE WINTER OF 1756-57— INACTIVITY. 75 

Before the army returned to Albany in October, and while a council 
of war was sitting at the great Carrying- Place (Fort Edward) to answer 
an important (!) question propounded by Gen. Abercromby, "What 
effect a junction of the King's troops, in the campaign against Crown- 
Point would have upon his Majesty's service.' " C apt. Robert R ogers, 
the uncrowned ranger, had performed a splendid feat upon Lake 
Champlain — a feat characterized by romantic and daring courage. 

In June, 1756, a force of 600 men under La Corn de vSt. Luc landed 
at South Bay, and after destroying at Half-way Brook a party of 
teamsters, who, under a small convey of troops, were transporting the 
baggage and provisions of Winslow's army from Fort Edward to Fort 
William Henry, escaped toward Fort St. Frederick by the same way 
they came. Accordingly, early in June, Rogers with Putnam, in order 
to intercept the mauraders, embarked with seventy- five men in five 
w^hale-boats, carr3'ing two small cannon, and landed on one of the 
picturesque islands that adorn the Lake. The next day, his men landed 
their boats some five miles distant from the Island, and carrying them 
six miles over a mountain to the narrows, re-embarked about eight miles 
below Whitehall in the present town of Dresden. Here they lay con- 
cealed in ambush waiting until St. Luc's party should pass by on their 
way to Ticonderoga. Nor was it long before his boats laden with the 
pkmder so recently taken, appeared. A rapid discharge of musketry 
and grape from the cannon, sunk several of the boats and killed a 
number of the enemy, the remainder escaping with all speed down the 
Lake. Fearing that the French, heavily reinforced, would rally, they 
returned to Fort William Henry, encountering on their way back, a large 
party of French and Indians at Sabbath-Day Point. 

After resting a few days, Rogers, wnth fifty men, went down Lake 
George coasting its eastern shore nearly to its foot. Here, carrying 
their whale-boats over the mountains of the northern part of Putnam 
they re -embarked at South Bay on the 3d of July. Passing down the 
Lake, reconnoitering as they went, rowing by night and lying concealed 
by day, they successively passed Fort St. Frederick and Crown Point — 
sailing down some thirty miles below the latter fort, while hiding 
during the day, many boats — sometimes a hundred at a time — and two 
large schooners passed the place of their concealment, some of the boats 

' MS. letter Surgeon Williams to his wife dated at Fort Edward in the authors' possession. "It 
appears to me that the settling ranks among ourselves may (if gone into according to some gentle- 
man's minds) be campaig:n enough for one year." 



76 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HLSTORY. 

sailing- so near that they could distinctly hear the orders given by the 
officers in command. 

On the evening of the yth of July, the scouts, which Capt. Rogers 
had sent out for a reconnoissance, reported that a schooner was lying at 
anchor a mile below their place of ambush. The rangers immediately 
lightened their boats and were preparing to board her when two bateaux' 
manned by twelve men were discovered coming up the Lake. Waiting 
until they had approached sufficient!}' near to the bank, the rangers 
suddenly showed themselves and fired, at the same time hailing the crews 
and offering quarter. Without responding to this oft'er, the boatmen, 
hastily turning their prows towards the opposite shore, attempted to 
escape. In this movement, however, the rangers anticipated them; for 
leaping into their light whale-boats, they gave chase, and soon captured 
the vessels and the bateaux, killing three of the crew and wounding 
two, one of whom shortly after died of his wounds. Not one escaped 
to carry tidings. The vessels, with their cargoes, were then sunk — the 
latter consisting chiefly of grain, wine and brandy — the rangers not 
having the facilities to carry them back to Fort William Henry. 

By this daring achievement in the very heart of the enemy's country, 
the garrison of Crown-Point were deprived of eight hundred bushels of 
flour, and a large quantity of money. The destruction of the cargoes 
being completed, the brave ranger and his equally gallant band, drew 
up their whale-boats on the shore, and concealing them in the brush- 
wood, marched through the woods on the east bank of Lake George, 
reaching Fort William Henry with their prisoners on the fifeenth of 

Military aft'airs during the remainder of this year remained generally 

1 Bateau.\ are so frequently mentioned in this history as being used on Lake George and 
Champlain and on Wood Creek, that I think the reader will be interested in having a description of 
them. The bateaux of the army (afterwards known as "Durham boats" or barge.s) were flat- 
bottom boats, having a plank around them to walk on or to pole, from thirty-five to forty feet long, 
each extremity terminating in a point; six feet beam in the center; usual weight, four and one-half 
tons; worked by oars; a mast sail; capable of carrying i.soo lbs of cargo; drag ropes for turning and 
long poles for " setting through the currents and rapids." The sides were about four feet high; and 
for the convenience of the rowers, four or five benches were laid across, .sometimes more, according 
to the length of the bateaux. Four men managed them jn summer, but in the fall another rower 
was always added. " It is," says Weld, who travelled here after the Revolution, "a very awkward 
sort of vessel either for rowing or sailing; but it is preferred to a boat with a keel for two very 
obvious reasons: first, because it draws less water, at the same time it carries a large burden; and 
secondly, it is much safer on lakes or large rivers, where .storms are frequent. A proof of this came 
under our observation the day of our leaving Montreal in 1796. We had reached a wide part of the 
river, and were .sailing along with a favorable wind, wheri suddenly the horizon grew very dark 
and a dreadful storm arose accompanied with loud pe^ls l:^f thunder and torrents of rain. Before 
the .sail could be taken m the ropes, which held it, we're stiapped in pieces' * * * The bateau was 



RAIDS OF ROGERS, STARK AND PUTNAM. 77 

in a quiescent state. Rogers and Stark, however, with their natural 
inclination for a forest and adventurous life, in January of the following 
year, (1757), planned a reconnoissance that, for bravery and dare-devil 
adventure, even exceeded their exploits of the previous year. 

AVith seventy-five men, Rogers and Stark set out, and, travelling now 
on the ice, and now on snow^-shoes, they skirted the eastern bank of 
Lake George ; crossed over on the third day out to Lake Champlain and 
captured some sledges which they met. From the prisoners thus taken, 
it was learned that Fort St. Frederick w^as strongly garrisoned. A few 
of the men in the sledges having escaped, Rogers knew that a party 
would at once be sent out to attack him; and he, therefore, ordered an 
immediate return to Fort William Henry.' 

On their way back, as they w^ere tramping over the snow in single 
file, they unexpectedly found themselves face to face with a force of 
French and Indians who had skillfidh' prepared an ambush — I say 
"skillfully" advisedly, as it must have been so to take Rogers and 
Stark — such experienced woodsmen — by surprise. 

In the conflict which now foUow'ed. Rogers was wounded in the head; 
and Stark, thereupon assuming the command, from a neighboring 
eminence formed his line and " firmly stood, in snow four feet in depth 
from two o'clock till nightfall," and repelled every attack of the enemy 
during that period. vStark also valiantly maintained his ground ; and 

consequently driven ashore, but the bottom of it being quite flat, it was carried southerly upon 
the beach without sustaining any injury; and the men, leaping out, drew it vipon dry land where 
we remained out of all danger till the storin was over. A keel-boat, however, of the .same size, 
could not have approached nearer to the shore than thirty feet, and then it would have stuck fast 
in the sand, and probably have been filled with water." Weld, who appears to have been a very 
shrewd observer, also gives an account of the mannar in which the boatmen manipulate their 
craft. " The men," he writes, " set their poles together at the same moment, and all worked at the 
same side of the bateaux. The steersman, however, shifts his pole accasionally from side to side 
in order to keep the vessel in an even direction. The poles commonly used are about eight feet in 
length, extremely light and headed with iron, on coming to a deep bay or inlet, the men abandon 
the poles, take to their oars, and strike, if possible, directly across the mouth of the bay; but if the 
current is too strong, they pole entirely round the bay. Whenever the wind is favorable they set 
their sail * * * The exertion required to .stem the current is so great that the men are obliged 
to stop very frequently to take breath. The places where they .stop are regularly ascertained, 
some of them, where the current is very rapid, are not more than half a mile distant, one from the 
other; others one or two, but none of them more than four miles apart, P>ach of these places, the 
boatmen, who are almost all French Canadians, denominate v«(> f>ipe,' because they are allowed 
to stop at it and till their pipes. 

I The reader is, of course, aware that an account of these expeditions which took place on 
Lake George is not irrelevant to the present history. That Lake forms the northwestern boundary 
of Washington county and hence all of these raids here given and to be narrated, further on, 
occurred properly within the limits of that county; and whenever, as 1 said, in my Introductory 
Chapter, events are spoken of as happening in contiguous territory,' they necessarily form a part 
of the narration — if a correct understanding of these events is to be arrived at. 



78 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

wherever the fire was the hottest he was found encouraging his men^ 
going so far even as to threaten " to shoot the first man who should 
attempt to fly. " The French gave up the fight at the approach of dusk: 
and those of the Rangers (forty-eight in number) who were unharmed, 
marched all night, through the woods and in defiance of the cold of a 
severe winter's night, reaching the foot of Lake George the following 
morning. At this point Stark, notwithstanding the terrible fatigue he 
had endured, pushed on to the fort at the head of the Lake, by himself, 
where, procm^ing sledges he returned for the wounded, all of whom (he 
himself drawing a loaded sledge) were finally brought back in safety to 
the Fort. Stark thus " stood out through three days and two nights of 
incessant and severe toil, engaged for nearly four hours in a hot combat; 
and the remainder of the time in travelling over snows and ice. " " We 
effeminate men of the present day," writes Dr. Fitch, "can scarcely 
credit that any human frame was ever capable of such endurance." 

Biit, notwithstanding these raids, which, when successful, helped to 
sustain the faltering hopes of the colonists, clouds of black portent 
hung over the opening of the new year, ] 757. 

Nothing so loses the respect of the Red Man as imbecility. The 
inactivity of the English during the year succeeding Baron Dieskau's 
defeat, and the consequent successes of the French, had in a measure, 
aided the latter to alienate the " Confederacy of the Six Nations" from 
the English interest; and an occurrence, therefore, which happened at 
this time by turning a little the scale, conduced greatly towards keeping 
these tribes loyal — a circumstance of incalculable moment to the 
Colonists in the war now impending. 

The report brought in by Mohawk scouts to Sir William Johnson in the 
early spring of 1757, that a French ariny was on its way to attack Fort 
Edward and the lower settlements, was not without foundation. On the 
15 th of March of that year a strong force under the command of Rigaud 
de Vaudreuil (a brother of the then Governor of Canada) left Ticon- 
deroga to ravage the frontiers of New York. Sleds, drawn by dogs, 
carried their provisions and munitions of war. Silently, under the 
overhanging cliffs of the Putnam Mountains, this body glided along on 
snow-shoes, slept at night on bear-skins with snow for their mattresses; 
and covered only with sail cloth, skirted the western border of Dresden 
and the northwestern corner of Fort Anne; and. on the evening of the 
17th, encamped three miles from Fort William Henr\' — the immediate 
object of their journey. 



FRENCH ATTACK ON FORT WILLIAM HENRY. 79 

At two o'clock on the morning- of the following- day the attention of 
a ranger sentinel on the ramparts of that fort was attracted to a 
mysterious light at some distance down the Lake. The conjectures to 
which this appearance gave rise were soon set at rest, when the gray 
dawn disclosed on the ice in front of the fort fifteen hundred French 
regulars, Canadians and Indians, armed with three hundred scaling- 
ladders and everything- necessary for a vigorous attack. Hardly, 
however, had the sun appeared above the horizon, when the guns of the 
fort served by William Eyre,' one of Braddock's most skillful engineers 
and artillerists, compel the enemy to retire with considerable loss. 
Towards noon, with their forces arranged in a semi-circle, they renewed 
the attack, but with no better success. At midnight of the same day 
they attempt a surprise, but accomplish nothing except the burning of 
the sloops and most of the bateaux. Finally, their demand for a 
surrender being refused, and another spirited attack being bravely 
repelled by the undaunted garrison, the French beat a retreat ; and 
being seized by a panic — the cause of which has never been ascertained — 
they flee precipitately down the Lake, leaving behind them twelve 
hundred of their sledges and a great quantity of millitary equipments. 
In the loss of men the enemy suffered severely; and the warm April sun 
revealed many a ghastly form wrapped in a winding sheet of snow. 

The following anecdote of General John Stark, who was in command 
of Fort William Henry at the time of this attack is related by Caleb 
Stark in his biography of his grandfather : 

" While going his roimds, on the evening of the sixteenth. Captain 
Stark overheard a squad of his men who were of the Scotch-Irish race, 
planning a celebration in honor of St. Patrick, for the next night. He 
afterward said that he had then no presentiment of approaching danger, 
but disliked these wild Irish demonstrations. He, therefore, called for 
the ranger sutler, Samuel Blodget, and gave him directions to deliver 
the rangers their regular rations of grog until the evening of the 
seventeenth; and after that no more, without a written order from 
himself. On that evening he retired to his quarters, directing his 
orderly sergeant to say to all applicants for written orders that he was 
confined to his bunk with a lame right hand, and must not be disturbed. 
The Irish troops (regulars) secured an extra supply of rum on the night 
of the sixteenth, and began their carousal which they carried on with 

1 The same ofticer, under whose supervision Fort Kdward was built. .See note in advance, 
wheti I speak of Dr. Dwight's visit to Washington county. 



80 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

unabated vigor through the night and during the ensuing day in honor 
of St. Patrick and his wife Sheelah. They drank so freely that the 
officer of the day could find none of them fit for duty as sentinels, and 
the rangers — those, at least who were sober — supplied their places. 
The rangers, seeing the Irish thus enjoying themselves, desired the 
same privilege. The sutler imformed them of his orders, and the 
captain's quarters weie beset to obtain a written order. The orderly 
refused to disturb his officer, as he was confined with a painfully lame 
right hand, and could not write. The soldiers felt somewhat cross, 
but bore their disappointments like philosophers. Upon the advance 
of the enemy notice was at once conveyed to the ranger captain. 
Instantly, the lame hand was restored to its normal condition, and he 
was among his men, who were silently mustered upon the walls. " The 
near approach of danger dissipated the fumes of liquor from the brains 
of the regulars, and the garrison was soon in condition for the vigorous 
and successful defence which they afterward made. Had it not been 
for this ruse on the part of Stark, it is hardly problematical what would 
have been the result of this night assault of the French. 

The news of this attack was conveyed to Sir William Johnson in a 
letter from Colonel (afterward General Gage of Revolutionary fame) on 
Sunday, the twentieth of March. He immediately issued orders for the 
militia on the Mohawk river to muster at his house as soon as possible, 
and sent Arent Stevens, his Indian interpreter, to the Mohawks, who, 
with others of the Six Nations, then at Mount Johnson, agreed to march 
forthwith. Such was the prompt response to his call, that at daybreak 
of Monday morning, he set out with the Indians and twelve hundred 
militia, reaching Fort Edward, on Thursday, the twenty-fourth. 
Receiving, however, on his arrival at that Fort intelligence from Major 
Eyre that the enemy had retreated, he returned on the twenty-sixth to- 
to his home at Mount Johnson. 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 81 



CHAPTER VIII. . 

1757- 
The Fren( h War Coniinuki) — Montcalm's Cai'Tikk ok Fort Wii.i.iam Henry 

ANT) THE Sl'HSECJUENT MaSSACRE ATTACK BV THE OlTAWAS oN FoRI El>\VARD 

Fasii.v Repulsed kv Putnam's Rangers. 

On the twentieth of June, Lord Loudonn, with six thousand regulars 
sailed from New York for Halifax, preparatory to investing Louisburgh. 
General Webb, now second in command, was detailed with six thousand 
men to garrison Fort William Henry, Fort Edward and the forts along 
the Mohawk Valley; General Stanwix with two thousand men, was 
assigned to the west; and Colonel Bouquet was directed to guard the 
borders of the Carolinas from the incursions of the Southern Indians. 

General Daniel Webb was probably the most consummate coward that 
the British Ministry ever sent either to her American or other Colonies. 
In addition to which he lacked even the simplest rudiments of military 
science. Indeed, he was merely an instance of the then British army 
system — (so aptly described by Thackeray in his Hoiry Esmond) — put- 
ting in nobodies to please the mistresses either of the King or his prime- 
ministers. The previous year, after the capture of Oswego, that officer 
had fled down the Mohawk in a pitiable state of physical collapse 
caused by abject fear — greatly to the disgust of the soldiers and 
the public. However, by great exertions on the part of Sir William 
Johnson, an army of several thousand Provincials, together with 
some regiments of regular troops, assembled under Webb's orders 
and rendezvoused at Fort Edward. The last of July General W'ebb 
started from that post for Fort William Henry under an escort of 
two hundred men commanded by Major Putnam, But Major Putnam 
soon after Webb's arrival, having ascertained through his scouts, that 
General Montcalm was rapidly approaching, Webb incontinently and 
in all haste returned to Fort Edward under a strong escort. The first 
act after his placing his body in safety within the friendly walls of Fort 
Edward was to dispatch Colonel George Monro — "a sturdy Scotch 
officer." — with his regiment to Fort William Henry — with orders to 
take the command of that fort — which was by this time known to be 
in the most imminent danger. Accordingly, that brave Scotch officer 

[10] 



82 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

set out from Fort Edward on the second of Ang-ust, arrivinjj- at the fort 
just as the French were about to take possession of the road between 
the two forts. The garrison was, b}- this means, increased to nearly 
twenty-five hundred men; while Webb had between four and five 
thousand at Fort Edward. But, as though this force was not sufficient 
for troops acting on the defensive behind solid defences, Webb sent 
expresses throughout the Colonies of New York and New England 
urgently praying for reinforcements. The call, notwithstanding the 
contempt in which W^ebb was held by the Colonial Governors, met with 
an immediate response. All the militia of New York north of the 
Highlands was called out while a "fourth of the able bodied men of 
Connecticut were drafted." A number of other Colonies responded 
with almost equal alacrity; and soon the soil of Washington county was 
trodden b}- larg"e bodies of militia, marching from ever}^ direction 
toward Fort Edward. But as it will be seen later on, all this suberb 
patriotism and these great efforts were rendered nugatory b}^ the 
cowardice of the General in command. 

Loudoun arrived in Halifax on the last day of June; and was soon 
joined by Admiral Holburn with sixteen ships of the line, and by 
George Viscount Howe, with six thousand disciplined troops — thus 
increasing his land force to eleven thousand well appointed and effective 
men. Everything, therefore, augured well for the expedition; and 
the sails, flapping idly in the favoring breezes, urged to immediate 
departure. But to the sluggish mind of Loudoun (a fit companion for 
his contemporary brother, General Webb) this was altogether too 
hasty a proceeding ! A vegetable garden must first be planted for the 
use of the army, and a parade-ground laid out, on which his regulars 
could attain yet higher discipline. Thus, while the troops were winning 
golden opinions from the Commander-in-Chief for their proficiency in 
fighting mock battles, and storming sham forti'esses, the beautiful July 
was frittered away. Roused at length by the murmuring of both officers 
and men, Loudoun gave orders to embark for Louisburgh. Scarcely, 
however, was the first anchor weighed, when, learning that Louis- 
burgh had received an additional reinforcement, and that the French 
fleet outnumbered by o)ic vessel his own, he reversed his orders, and 
with his troops returned to New York; having accoinplished nothing, 
save the intercepting of a small vessel bearing dispatches from the 
Governor of Louisiana, of a Peace recently concluded by the latter with 
the Cherokees ! 



CAPTURE OF FORT WTLTJA^r HENRY. 83 

Meanwhile, (leneral Montcalm was not an indifferent spectator of 
these occurrences. With an eagle eye he had followed the movements 
of the Commander-in-Chief;' and while the latter was watching the 
growth of his cabbages under a Jnly sun, he rightly judged that the time 
had come for a descent upon Fort William Henry. 

While the fate of that fortress was already determined upon by the 
French General, the partizans of the latter were not inactive. (Jn 
the twenty-third of July, Lieutenant ^larin, a Canadian officer and the 
same one who had destro3^ed the " Lydius ]Mills " at the (xreat Carrying- 
Place in 1745, appeared before F'ort Edward at the head of two hundred 
men; and after a brisk skirmish, returned with thirty-two scalps and 
one prisoner taken from under the very gams of the Fort. On this 
French partizan's return to Ouebec, in excuse for not bringing more 
prisoners, he told ^lontcalm that " he did not amuse himself bv taking 
prisoners." 

Almost at the .same time, another scene equal in barbarity, w^as 
w'itnes.sed on the farther boundary of this county. Desirous of emulating 
the exploit of Lieutenant Marin, Lieutenant Corbiere, also a Canadian 
officer, with fifty Canadians and three himdred Ottawas lay in ambush 
among the islands of Lake George, near vSabbath-Day Point, all day and 
night of the twenty-sixth. At sunrise of the twenty-seventh, twenty- 
two bateaux, having on board a New- Jersey regiment of three hundred 
soldiers, under the command of Colonel Palmer," were seen on the Lake. 
Rising with terrific yells from their concealment, the Indians attacked 
the English with such ferocity that only two of the barges escaped. 
Twenty of the boats were either capti:red or sunk ; and keeping time 
with their paddles to a wild and wierd melody, the Indians returned 
down the Lake, having their canoes decorated with the scalps of one 
hvmdred and sixty Englishmen.' 

* It must, ere this, have occurred to the reader who has followed me in this history, how much 
farther ahead the French always were in the matter of obtaining information of the movements of 
the English, than the latter. This which only shows the imbecility of the British Generals will be 
much more apparent when 1 come to narrate the " Burgoyne Campaign." 

^ Not Parker as has been generally stated. 

3 It has always been a much mooted question whether any of our Northern Indians (the 
Algonquins, Adirondacks, Hurons, etc.) ever practiced canibalism. The Jesuit Relations, it is true, 
seem to say they did. But it was, if it ever occurred, to make them brave by eating the hearts of 
their enemie:; rather than as food. Thus, when Roubard, a French historian, says that on this 
particular occasion of " his own knowledge " one of the slain Provincials was actually boiled and 
eaten by the " ferocious Ottawas," we mvist admit it. See, also, some pages back, when one of the 
French opposed to Col. Peter Schuyler, was boiled. This, however, was, to assuage hunger and 
escape starvation. 



84 WAvSHINCrrON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Montcalm was a true soldier. Disdaining the effeminate accompani- 
ments of civilization, he strove to inure his men to hardship, himself 
setting the example. " In such an expedition," he said to his officers 
who were disposed to gnmible, " a blanket and a bear-skin are the bed 
of a warrior. Imitate me. A soldier's allowance ought to suffice us." 
Still, with the thoughtfulness which characterized him, he did not forbid 
a inattress when age or infirmity rendered one necessary. Inspirited by 
his example, hundreds of the Red men from the shores of the Great 
Lakes to the forests of Acadia and Maine, flocked to his standard. 
" Father," said they, "we are come to do your will;" and the close of 
July found him at the foot of Lake (leorge with ten thousand men — 
two thousand of whom were Indians.' 

The Savages yelled with delight as they pushed oft' their bark canoes 
from the shore. Montcalm followed with the bulk of his army in two 
hundred and fifty boats; while De Levi, with the remainder, marched 
through the foi'est on the Western shore of Lake George, guided by 
some of the recreant Iroquois from the Sault vSt. Louis. On the first of 
August, a council of war was held in their boats in the North-west Bay; 
and on the second, Montcalm disembarked with his troops and artil- 
ler}' in a cove about two miles from Fort William Henry, where he 
was entirely sheltered from its cannon. De Levi encamped with his 
regulars direct^ in the rear of the fort, and where is (1900) the site of 
Fort Gage ; while the Canadians and Indians under vSt. Luc, took up a 
position on the road to Fort Edward, thus cutting oft' all communication 
with that garrison. Montcalm, with the main body of his army, occu- 
pied a wood about three-quarters of a mile from the fort, north of a 
small creek, and near the site of the Court House in the \"'illage of Cald- 
well. To resist these formidable preparations, Lieutenant-Colonel Mon- 
ro had but four hundred and forty-nine men within the fort, and only 
seventeen hundred men in a fortified camp on the rocky eminence now 
(1900) the site of Fort (xeorge. 

The French commander, having sent, on the fourth of August, a 
summons to Monro to siuTender, and having received a point blanc 
refusal, opened upon the fort a battery of nine cannon and two mortars. 

' MS. letter: DoiMel to I'auliuy. iist July, r757. 



CAPTURE OF FORT WILLIAM HENRY. S5 

Two days afterwards, two more batteries having- been placed in position, 
played on the English camp with telling- effect. Meanwhile, the brave 
Monro, confident of reinforcements from Webb, to whom he had 
dispatched an express messenger informing him of his situation, plied 
his guns with spirit, throwing vast quantities of shot and shell into the 
enemy's camp. The men in the intrenchments also worked hard, pour- 
ing a galling fire into the French, by day; and each night, by the light 
of the fires, toiling- to repair the breaches made in their defences. 

Colonel Monro's hope of reinforcements was vain. \N\ih/o!tr fhousaiid 
men, Webb lay at Fort Edward, listening in abject terror to the distant 
roar of the artillery. ' For this conduct of Webb, there is not the slight- 
est palliation. The approach of Montcalm, as we have seen, had not 
taken him by surprise. Sir William Johnson had written him to be on 
his guard; that the F^rench were short of provisions, and that, if they 
came, they would come in large numbers, and would "make a bold 
push."' He had also received intelligence that Montcalm was moving 
up Lake Champlain with an arm}" "numerous as the leaves of the trees. " 
Beyond, however, sending lo the Lieutenant-CTOvernor and the Baronet 
to hurry up the militia, he did nothing for the relief of the beleaguered 
garrison, although express after express arrived, from its gallant com- 
mander imploring aid. 

Sir William Johnson was at Fort Johnson, holding an important 
council with the Cherokees, when news arrived on the first of August 
from Webb, of the approach of Montcalm. Notwithstanding he had 
his " hands and head full," ' yet, he abruptly broke up the conference, 
.and hastily collecting what militia and Indians he could muster, started 
for the relief of Webb, arriving- at Fort Edward two days after the 
investment of Fort William Henry. Seeing at once the position of 
affairs, he begged that he might be sent to the relief of Monro. After 
repeated solicitations, his request was granted; but scarcely was he 
fairly on his wav ' with Putnam's Rangers and some Provincials who 

> I say "distant ; " though the roar of the artillery was heard as far south as Albany ; nor, is 
this strange, as the ravines between the mountains acted, so to speak, as a speaking trumpet. 

2 MS. Letter: [ohnson to Webb. The correctness of this information given by Johnson, is 
A-erified by a letter from Doreil to I'aulmy, under date of 14th August, 1757, in which the writer 
says : " In the article of subsistence, we are in the greatest distress since winter ; and each person 
in Quebec has been for more than a month reduced to four ounces of bread. It is but too evident 
that a long time will elapse before we shall be more at our ease." 

3 MS. Letter. Johnson to Webb, ist August, 1757, in my possession. 
■* He had got as far as the prc'^nt site of William's mominient 



80 WASHINGT(3N COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

had vohmteered to share the danger, when Webb ordered him and his 
detachment back, sending in their place a letter to Monro full of 
exaggerations, and advising him to surrender! Could poltroonery have 
gone further ! This letter was intercepted by Montcalm, who immedi- 
ately sent it to Monro, with the request that he would follow Webb's 
advice and thus save any further effusion of blood. That gallant officer 
thanked him for his courtesy, and renewed his firing. At length, ten 
of his cannon having burst, his ammimition being nearly exhausted, 
and all hope from his commanding officer being at an end, Colonel 
Monro, on the ninth, hoisted the white flag. 

The terms given by Montcalm to the garrison were fair. They were 
to march out with all the honors of war, taking with them their baggage 
and small arms, and also one cannon out of respect for the gallant 
defence they had made. In return, they were to pledge themselves 
that they would not bear arms against the French for eighteen months; 
and were to deliver up at Ticonderoga within four months all the 
French and Indian prisoners which they had taken since the beginning 
of the war. Montcalm, on his part, pledged himself to furnish them 
with an escort of at least five hundred men, to accompany them seven 
miles on the road to Fort Edward. 

Late in the afternoon of the same day, Montcalm took formal posses- 
sion of the Fort, the garrison of which joined their comrades in their 
entrenchments. The French General knowing well the Indian character, 
especially warned the English against giving the Savages anything that 
might intoxicate them. Well would it have been had this timely and 
judicious caution been followed. But the Indians, unable to obtain any 
rum from the French, begged it of the English, who disregarding 
Montcalm's advice, and hoping in this manner to win the good will of 
the Indians, freely supplied them with that drink during the entire 
night.' At sunrise, the Indians gathered aroimd the intrenchments ; 
and as the English began their march, the Savages, maddened by their 
night's debauch, hovered around them, brandishing their tomahawks 
and uttering horrid yells. Still, even at this time, had the English 
stood their ground, or even manifested any firmness whatever, it is 
probable that the scenes which followed would never have occurred ; 
but loosing all presence of mind, they fled down the road in the wildest 
confusion, throwing down their baggage, arms and even their clothes/ 

1 Vaudreuil to Morras, Sept. 1757. 

2 See Dr. Diuighfs Travels. Also, Vaudreuil to Morras, Sept. 1757. 



THE MAvSSACRE. 87 

This, of course, only increased the rage and violence of the Indians, who 
now boldly attacked them, plundering some, scalping others, and taking- 
many prisoners. 

Of the few individuals, the incidents of whose perilous escape on this 
occasion have been handed down to us, I quote the account of the 
afterwards celebrated traveller, Jonathan Carver, who chanced to be 
present during this flight. He says : 

" At the camp, I had my money, buckles, coat, waistcoat and hat 
wrested from me ; and though I applied to a French sentinel near by 
for protection, I was only called an ' English Dog, ' and was violently 
pushed back into the midst of the Savages. Subsequently, when it was 
found that our only chance of life was to break through the hordes of 
Savages by which we were environed, I, with twenty more, sprang 
into the midst of the Indians. In a moment we were all separated, and 
what was the fate of my companions, I could not learn, till some months 
after, when I found that only six or seven of them had effected their 
escape. Intent only on my own hazardovis situation, I endeavored to 
make my way through my vSavage enemies in the best manner possible. 
Some I overturned, being at that time young and athletic, and others 
1 passed by, dexterously avoiding their weapons; till, at last, two very 
stout chiefs of the most savage tribes, as I could distinguish by their 
dress and whose strength I could not resist, laid hold of me by each arm, 
and began to force me through the crowd. But, before we had got 
many yards an English gentleman of some distinction, as I could discern 
by his breeches (the only clothing he had on) which were of fine scarlet 
velvet, rushed close by us. One of the Indians instantly springing on 
this new object, endeavored to seize him as his prey; but the gentleman 
being strong, threw him on the ground, and would probably have got 
away, had not he v^'ho held my other arm, quitted me to assist his 
brother. I seized the opportunity, and hastened away to join another 
party of English troops that were yet unbroken, and stood in a body at 
some distance; but before I had taken many steps, I hastily cast my 
■eyes towards the gentleman and saw the Indians' tomahawks gash in 
his back, and heard him utter his last groan.' I had left this shocking 
5cene but a few yards, when a fine boy, about twelve years of age, that 
had hitherto escaped, came up to me, and begged that I would let him 

' It would be futile, I kmiw, to trace this gentleman's family in Knijland; still some of his 
^leMcendants may even yet say that their ancestor was never heard from aftei' the French War in 
America. 



88 WASHIN(tT()N COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

lay hold of me, so that he might stand some chance of getting ont of 
the hands of the Savages. I told him that I would give him every 
assistance in my power; and to this purpose, bid him to lay hold; but 
in a few moments he was torn from my side, and by his shrieks I 
judged he was soon demolished.'" 

The miserable remnants of this ill-starred garrison, after straggling 
through the woods, reached Fort Edward singly or in small parties. 
Many, after sleeping one or two nights in the open air, came in, in a 
most pitiable and forlorn condition, nearly or quite naked— their bodies- 
gashed with the knife or tomahawk and some of them in a state of 
delirium from the awful horrors they had passed through. Major 
Putnam was dispatched with his rangers the following morning to 
watch the motions of Montcalm, and arrived as the rear- guard of the 
French force, after demolishing and burning all the fortifications, was 
disappearing down the Lake on its return to Ticonderoga. ' ' The 
spectacle," says Putnam, "that was presented was so shockingly 
diabolical, that human eyes were scarcely able to endure the sight. 
Though fourteen thousand persons ' had been congregated upon that 
spot the preceding morning, not a living thing was now standing there. 
But, scattered over and covering the ground thick as the leaves of 
autumn, lay the ghastly corpses, weltering in their gore, mangled and 
mutilated with all the wantonness of Indian fierceness and barbarity; 
some with their throats cut; others with their brains oozing out from 
their cloven heads; and yet others, with the hair and scalp torn away, 
leaving only the naked, bloody skull. Upon the plain all was now still 
and silent, save an occasional faint moan from some poor victim, in 
whom the spark of life yet lingered. Within the camp enclosure,, 
inntimerable fragments of human bones and carcasses half consumed 
were still frying and broiling in the decaying fires. In fact, devasta- 
tion, barbarity and horror, indescribably awful, everywhere appeared." 
Montcalm was in his tent when the news of the behavior of his Savage 
allies was brought to him. With all possible speed he hastened to the 
spot ; and with De Levi and other officers rushed into the melee, exposing 
himself to death; using prayers, threats and caresses; begging the 
interposition of the Chiefs and interpreters; and in short applying every 
means in his power to stop the horrid carnage. The French soldiers, also 
aided their General, receiving, in many instances, serious wounds — one 

1 Bad enough at the best— still, Putnam certainly exaggerates this number. 



THE MASSACRE. 89 

of them, indeed, being- killed.' Finally, after thirty of the Provincials 
had been massacred,-' those of the soldiers who had not succeeded in 
reaching Fort Edward were rescued from the Indians, and sent into 
Fort William Henry; receiving new clothes and every attention that 
humanity could suggest. The next day the unfortunates (not including- 
those who, as we have seen, reached Fort Edward on their own hook, 
as it were,) numbering four hundred, were sent under a strong guard to 
that Fort — two Chiefs of each Nation being detailed with the party, as 
an additional protection against any further assaults from their warriors. 
Two hundred of the garrison were carried by the Indians to Montreal; 
but they, together with those taken from the bateaux under Colonel 
Palmer were immediately ransomed by De Vandreuil, and sent by an 
armed vessel to Halifax. 

Dreadful as was this example of Punic faith on the part of the Indians, 
Montcalm himself must be exonerated from being instrumental in it, 
either by accident or design. His conduct, the previous year at Oswego, 
in arresting the contemplated massacre by shooting six Indians on the 
spot, allows us reasonably to infer, that if he had known of this alfair 
before it was fairly under way, he would have adopted the same sum- 
mary means, and thus prevented the bloody scene which has just been 
described. While, therefore, oiir sympathies must ever flow out towards 
the unforttmate garrison, we should never allow them to prejudice us 
against one who ever proved himself as humane as he was brave. 
Rather, let our indignation fall upon him, who with ample means at 
his command and wathin fourteen miles of the Fort, allowed its brave 
defenders to become the victims of such barbarity. 

By the orders of ^Montcalm, the walls of the Fort were leveled with 
the ground, and everything of a combustible nature consumed. The 
destruction being complete, the French, having wath them large stores 
taken from the English, returned to Ticonderoga, leaving behind only 
blackened and smouldering ruins. Instead of the evening gun, now 
arose the howl of the wolf preying on the mangled bodies of the slain; 
and the waters of the Lake reposing peacefully among the hills told not 
of the bloody struggle, nor of the war and din of arms.' 

^ Journal of the Expedition. 

2 The New Hampshire Regiment, in the war, felt the chief fury of the enemy.— />V//.-«a/. 

3 Before the present hotel, " The Fort William Henry " was built, on the site of this fort. I 
have often dug up skeletons and silver buttcms— belonging to the poor unfortunate victims. 

[11 J 



90 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITvS HISTORY. 

Upon the fall of Fort William Henry, Webb was paralyzed with 
terror. He sent his personal effects by an express messeno-er under a 
heavy escort to Albany, and was on the point of falling back upon the 
Highlands when Lord Howe, who had arrived on the seventh with 
reinforcements calmed his fears by assuring him that there was no 
prospect of an immediate attack; and soon after, having ascertained to 
a certainty that the enemy were on their retreat to Ticonderoga, he 
dismissed to their homes twenty thousand of the militia, who had 
arrived at Fort Edward a few days after the surrender. 

But the morale of the army was completely destroyed. vSir William 
Johnson returned in disgust to Albany; while among the powers in 
authority mutual recriminations followed. Webb accused De Lancv 
of not sending reinforcements in time ; and the latter, with far more 
truth, insisted that Webb was strong enough to have marched to the 
relief of the besieged long before they surrendered. The militia, 
willing to fight, but weary of being led to slaughter by incompetent 
leaders, deserted by scores, and in one instance, out of a company of 
forty men stationed at Fort Edward, ten only were left ! 

The news of the capitulation reached Albany on the 8th of August 
just as additional reinforcements were on their way to Fort Edward; 
but as the conduct of Webb was sustained by the regular troops,' the 
Lieutenant-Governor feared to make such representations to the British 
Ministry, as it desired. Consequenth^ Webb returned to England, and 
far from being court-martialed for his outrageous conduct, received 
additional honors. No wonder that with such influences the English 
forces were for many years the sport of an active and determined foe. 

" As to our military operations," wrote at this time, Mr. De Lancy, in 
his message to the New York Colonial Assembly, " we are still on the 
losing side, Fort William Henry, near Fort Edward, at the head of 
Lake (ieorge, being taken and deniolished by the eneni}^ after a seige 
of eight days, with no great loss of men on either side. It surrendered 
on capitulation, by which the French became masters of the fort, artiller)', 
and all the stores; and that which makes it more unfortunate is, that 
here were lodged all our cannon and stores intended against Crown- 
Point. It seems very strange to us that the French can send such large 
siipplies to America and alwavs before us, notwithstanding the great 

1 So invt'tcratf and uiireusunable is the jirejudicf of rejjtilius :i.i;ainst \olunti.-ers — a prejudice 
which neither the French Wars, nor the .Vnierican Revolntinn, nor yet the kite Civil War, and the 
war with Spain lias yet eradicated ! 



REPULvSE OF THE OTTAWAS. 1)1 

superiority of the British navy. Surely there must be a great failure 
somewhere, which if not timely remedied, may probably end in the 
entire loss of English- America." 

The close of the year was inarked by nothing of particular inoment. 
( General Lyman succeeded Webb in command of Fort Edward ; and the 
winter wore away with nothing worthy of mention except, perhaps, an 
attempt on the part of some Ottawas to surprise that fort. It seems, 
that while making some repairs to the fort a hundred and fifty workmen 
were sent out into the neighboring forest to obtain the necessary timber ; 
a Captain Little being posted with a small force of soldiers to protect 
the wood-choppers. While the work was in progress, in the early dawn 
of an autumn morning the party were suddenly attacked by a portion of 
that nation. General Lyman, ignorant of the enemy's force, did not 
dare to send aid to the party thus assailed (not knowing in what force 
the enemy were) and ordered the gates of the fort to be closed. Mean- 
while, Major Putnam, who with his rangers, was stationed on the island 
in the river opposite the fort, hearing the fire of musketry, leaped 
into the water, and followed by his men eagerly pressed forward to the 
relief of Captain Little's band. As they passed the fort, Lyman called 
out ordering them to halt and retire within the fort. Putnam and his 
men, however, paying no heed to this command from his superior offi- 
cer, continued on to the rescue. Reaching by this time the almost 
exhausted and nearly overpowered party; and with a shout, which 
drowned the war-cries of the Ottawas, they swept through a morass in 
their front and put the savages to flight. Lyman took no notice of 
Putnam's disobedience of orders — success being fully a vindication of 
this insubordination ; to which, also, may have been added in his own 
mind that an investigation would not have contributed anything to his 
own reputation in the affair.' 

Shortly after this skirmish (whether caused by Lyman's seeming 
delinquenc)- in allowing himself to have been so nearly ' ' caught 
napping," is not known,) that officer was relieved; Colonel Haviland of 
the regular army, succeeding him in the command of that fort. 

1 Dr. Fitch. 



92 WASHIXCtTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

CHAPTER IX. 

1758-1763. 

Thk Frkxch W.vr Co.xiixuED — Ro(;kks Suki'RIskd — M()u.\i.i<;h 1 Fmni at "Put's 
Rock," xkar Whitehall — Dkfkai' of Gknkrai. Ahkrckomuv — Dincan Cami'- 
bf.ll's Ghos'i' — The Conquest of Can'aoa r.v Wolff axu Amherst. 

The campaign ag-ainst Canada, of 1758, opened with great apparent 
spirit ; the hostile incursions of the Canadian Indians serving to rouse 
the Colonists to greater activit}'. On the 13th of March of that year, 
a party of some seven hundred French and Indians, commanded by 
Duvantaye and the Sieur de Langly. surprised and fell upon a detach- 
ment of two hundred rangers, under Major Rogers, who were scouting 
in the neighborhood of Ticonderoga. The Indians brought back one 
hundred and forty- four scalps and some prisoners, among the later of 
whom were two officers — Captain, afterwards Major-General Henry 
Pringle, and Lieutenant Roche. Rogers retired with fifteen men and 
two officers. Three days afterwards, these two officers, having wan- 
dered around and lost themselves in the forest in a vain attempt to 
escape, caine into Fort vSt. Frederick (Ticonderoga) and surrendered 
themselves to the French. Rogers himself escaped b)' approaching the 
summit of Bald Mountain on the shore of Lake George at the place since 
called "Rogers' Slide;" when, reversing his snow-shoes, and taking a 
back track for some distance he swung himself by a friendly and over- 
hanging branch into a defiile and found his way thence down the Lake. 
The Indians, following his tracks, approached the top of the slide, and 
were astounded and nearly awe-struck at the apparent feat of sliding 
down five or six hundred feet into the Lake. But there was to them 
no question of the fact ! There was Rogers, in plain sight, gliding on 
the ice of the Lake — and so they gave up the pursuit. Again, on June 
2d, Le Sieur de Outelas, marching from Carillon' to Fort Edward, 
at the head of twenty-nine Nepissings, and Algonquins, discovered a 
party of English troops and Mohawks. The former uttered their war- 
cr}', and buried the hatchet to the heft in the heads of the latter, who, 
greatly frightened hv the suddenness of the attack, took to their heels — 

■ Fort St. Frederick, Fort Ticondero.ija, and Fort Carillon (mcanint;- a chinif of lU'Us from tlic 
noise of the rapid.sl are all one and the same. 



THE FRENCH WAR CONTINUED. 98 

leavin<>- i'our killed and six captives in the hands of the enemy — -these 
last being- taken alive for the more dreadful death by torture. 

The Mother Country and her Colonies alike, in view of these atrocities, 
therefore felt that they had much to accomplish if they would repair 
the losses and disappointments of the preceding two years. Indeed, 
the repeated failures of Braddock and Webb, and Lord Loudoun, had 
chagrined and exasperated the Nation. The elder Pitt, who had 
succeeded the silly Newcastle, even declared in Parliament that there 
appeared to be a determination on the part of the officers in command, 
against any vigorous execution of the service of the country ; and when, 
during the same year, the King was remonstrated with on appointing so 
young and rash a madman as Wolfe to conduct the meditated expedition 
against Quebec, the sturdy Brunswicker vexedly replied — " If he is 
mad, I hope he will bite some of iny Generals.' It was under these 
circumstances, that England determined to put forth her whole energies 
in the three formidable expeditions this year projected; — against 
Louisburgh under General Amherst ; against Fort Du Quesne, on the 
Ohio ; and the third and most formidable division against Ticonderoga 
and Crown- Point with a view of striking a blow upon Montreal. 

With the great Commoner's entrance into power a new order of things 
arose in America. That half idiot Lord Loudoun, was superseded in 
March by Abercromby, and General Webb soon after, followed the 
former to England.' The same vessel which brought the news of Lou- 
doim's recall, brought also circular letters from the War Minister to the 
Colonial Governor, informing them that the British Cabinet had 
determined to send on a large force for offensive operations against the 
French by sea and land ; and calling upon them for as large a number 
of inen as they felt able to raise according to their population, " arms, 
ammunition, tents, provisions and boats," it was declared, "would be 
furnished by the Crown," and the Provincial Governors, meanwhile, were 
desired to buy clothes and pay their troops, and appoint the officers of 
the various regiments. All the Provincial Colonels were to be made 
Brigadier-Generals; and the Lieutenant-Colonels while in service in 
America, were to rank as Colonels. These tidings were hailed by the 

' One is reminded by Uiis incident of the well authenticated one rej^ardin^ Grant and President 
Lincoln, who, when remonstrated with for keeping (irant at the head of the army on the ground 
that he drank large quantities of whiskey, replied : " Give me the name of the particular brand 
he drinks, that I may send it to some of my other tieneralsl" 

'■* General Webb's recall was attributed at the time to the representations of Colonel Monro 
11' the Ministry. MS. letter Guy John.son to .Sir William Johnson. 



94 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

Colonists with delight; sick, as their hearts had so long been, with 
hope long deferred. The recall of Londoun was accepted by them as 
a desire of the Parent Government to conciliate; and they all, New 
England, especially, entered into the work of co-operation with alacrity. 
Massachusetts raised seven thousand men; Connecticut five thousand; 
and New Hampshire, one regiment of eight hundred. Rhode Island 
and New Jersey were not backward ; and the Assembly of New York 
having voted without hesitation, in March, to raise, clothe and pay 
two thousand, six hundred and eighty men, besides providing for the 
support of every needy soldier's family in his absence, twenty thou.sand 
Provincials were in Albany and ready to take the field early in May. ' 

With the expedition to Halifax, we have nothing to do as it does not 
come within the province of this History except to say it was in the 
main successful. 

Meantime, while preparations w^ere making for a formidable and 
vigorous campaign against Ticonderoga, under General Abercromby, 
who had resolved to lead the expedition in person, the French were 
making corresponding exertions to repel the expected invasion. With 
a view of creating a division, by annoying the Colony of New York, it 
was given out that an attempt was to be made on Oswego. This, 
however, was ignored — as it was determined that every elfort should be 
made to resist the attack of the French by way of the Lakes. 

For the prosecution of the campaign against Ticonderoga and Crown- 
Point, an army of regular troops and Provincials was asseinbled, 
unprecedented for its numbers in the annals, thus far, of American war- 
fare. General Abercromby, as before remarked, determined to lead 
the expedition in person. The rendezvous of the formidable army 
destined upon this service was first at Fort Edward, where, on the 5 th 
of June, General Viscount Howe arrived w4th the first division of the 
army of invasion — Major Rogers being sent ahead with fifty men to 
Lake Champlain on a reconnoisance. On the 22nd Lord Howe moved 
forward to the head of Lake George, where the charred and blackened 
ruins of Fort William Henry — a monument to (General Webb's coward- 
ice — yet remained. 

jMeantime, with a view of keeping the enemy at Ticonderoga ignorant 
of the advance of the army, Putnam was dispatched with fifty men to 

1 I have been particular to mention these strenuous efforts on the part of the Colonies to show 
how they responded to the call of the Mother Country — and as it will afterwards be seen how 
shamefully all their efforts were rendered nugatory by Abercromby. 



MOONLIGHT FIGHT AT PUT'S ROCK. 95 

the head of Lake Chaniplain with the object of preventing' the French 
from reconnoitering in the vicinity of Fort Edward. Proceeding down 
Wood-Creek, the veteran ranger posted himself and party in a position 
well adapted for the object in view. " Three- fourths of a mile distant 
from the point where South Bay makes off from Lake Champlain and 
about the same distance north from the present Village of Whitehall, 
there is a short and sudden turn in the Lake called, in allusion to its 
shape, 'the Fidler's Elbow.' High ledges of rock here border the 
Lake on each side so as to render it extremely difficult for passing 
steamboats to clear the overhanging cliffs on either hand." On the 
promontory on the west side and behind some breastworks hastily 
thrown up, the rangers took their stand to drive back any bands of the 
enemy that might approach. Fifteen out of his fifty men, Putnam was 
forced by sickness, to send back to Fort Edward. Their patience and 
perseverance were at length rewarded; for, on the evening of the fourth 
day, a great number of canoes filled with nearly five hundred French 
and Indians and led by the ferocioiis and notorious French Partizan 
Marin were espied coming up the Lake and into the mouth of vSouth 
Bay. When the enemy had well advanced into his trap, Putnam sprung- 
it by ordering his men to fire. The moon being at its full enabled this 
fire to be of deadly effect — every ball counting; and the battle, if so it 
•can be called, was kept up till daylight, when the French, seeing the 
smallness of the force against them, attempted to outflank the rangers. 
Their leader' perceiving this, and his amunition being expended, with- 
drew and fell back on Fort Edward. The rock from which Putnam and 
his men delivered such an effective fire is called " Put's Rock " and is 
still pointed out to the curious tourist of the present day. Of Putnam's 
party only one was killed and one other wounded and captured; while, 
according to Marin, who told Putnam (when the latter was a captive 
in Canada) the French had nearly one-half of their men killed. Before 
arriving at the Great Carrying- Place, however, Putnam was destined 
to meet with another adventure which might have proved serious 
enough to ccmnteract the recent advantage just gained over the French. 
As he was making his way through the tangled underbrush of the 
primeval forest, he was suddenly fired upon, by which one of his men 
was wounded. "Charge bayonets," cried Putnam, thinking that he 
in his turn, had fallen into a trap. " We are friends," exclaimed the 
leader of the suspected enemy who was also on a scouting expedition. 



96 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

" Friends or foes," exclaimed Putnam, "you ou(j;-ht to be ciit to pieces 
for doing svich poor shooting when you had so fair a shot ! " 

The morning of the fifth of July — the day of the embarkation — was 
clear and beautiful. The spectacle was full of life and animation and 
withal very imposing. The forces collected on the occasion numbered 
seven thousand British troops of the line, and upward of ten thousand 
Provincials, exclusive of the many hundreds of non-combatants neces- 
sarily in the train of such an army. The flotilla for their transporta- 
tion to Ticonderoga, consisted of nine hundred bateaux, and one 
hundred and thirty-five whale-boats, together with a sufficient number 
of rafts to convey the heavy stores and ammunition, and the artillery 
to cover the landing of the troops, in the neighborhood of the works 
first to be invested. The utmost confidence of siiccess inspired 
both officers and men; and all was activity and gayety in getting in 
motion, from the instant the reveille startled the armed host from their 
repose at the dawn, until the einbarkation was complete. So sure were 
all of an easy victory, that they went forth as to a grand review, or 
the pageant of a national festival. A part of England's chivalry was 
gathered there, of whom was the accomplished Lord Howe, distin- 
guished alike for his generosity, his gallantry, and his courage. Many 
other young noblemen of high bearing and promise were also there; 
together with a still greater number of nature's noblemen, in the persons- 
of New England's hardy sons, both in commission and in the ranks. 
Nor, were the spirited Colonists of the Colony of New York unrepre- 
sented. Their sons, both of English and Dutch descent, sustained a 
generous rivalry in their chivalrous bearing, and evinced an equal 
readiness to " rtish to glory or the grave," for the honor of their coun- 
try. These proud spirited Americans, with the blood of freemen hotly 
coursing through their veins neither knew nor cared whether they were 
descended from the Talbots, the John of Gaunts, or the Percys; but 
their hearts beat as high, and their souls were as brave, and their sinewy 
arms could strike as heavy blows, as those who could trace the longest, 
ancestry, or wore the proudest crest. There, also, was the proud High- 
land regiment of Lord John Murray, with their bag-pipes, their tartan 
breacan, fringed down their brawny legs, and their black plumes in 
their bonnets. What an array, and what a splendid armament, for a 
small and quiet Lake, sequestered so deeply in the interior of what was- 
then a woody continent, and imbedded in a wild and remote chasm^ 
among a hundred mountains. Yet this lonely and inhospitable region,. 



DEFEAT OF ABERCROMBY. 97 

where there were nothinji- but rocks and solitudes and bleak mountains 
to contend for, was to be the theatre on which the rival courts of St. 
James and St. Cloud were to be decided — and on which, the embattled 
host of Europe, at the distance of a thousand leagues from their 
respective homes, were to be joined in the bloody conflict for empire ! 

The morning- being- perfectly clear, after the light mists which floated 
peacefully along the sides of the hills had disappeared, the sky glowed 
brighter and purer than many in that army had ever seen it. Before 
them, at their feet, lay the crystal waters of the Lake, like a mirror of 
molten silver — the emerald islands tufted with trees, floating as it were 
in the clear element. In the camp, on the open esplanade by the shore, 
was the mustering of troops, the hurrying to and fro of the officers, the 
rattling of the military equipments, the neighing of steeds with all the 
inharmonious confusion which such a scene must necessarily present. 
Beyond, wide spread upon the Lake, were the thousand barges, shifting 
and changing places as convenience required, the banners of the differ- 
ent regiments streaming gaily in the breeze; while the swell of cheer- 
ful voices, the rolling of the drimis," the prolonged and exhilarating 
notes of the bugle, as they resoimded among the mountains, combined 
to throw over the entire wild region an air of enchantment. 

Indeed, the whole of this memorable passage of Lake George 
resembled more the pageant of a grand aquatic gala, or a dream of 
romance, than a chapter of stern history. Stretching down the Lake, 
the scenery, partook of the .same wild and glorious character, and every 
mile of their progress disclosed new objects of wonder, or presented 
fresh sources of delight. It was a day, moreover, of tmmingled pleasure. 
A fine elastic breeze swept through the gorges of the moimtains, 
serving to brace the nerves, and produce a glow of good feeling, humor 
and hilarity, which lasted till the setting sun. The animal spirits were 
often cheered and enlivened by favorite airs from the well appointed 
regimental bands. Wheeling aloft, with untiring wing, as if moving 
with, and watching over the armament, were several noble bald eagles, 
whose eyries hung on the beetling crags, affording to the soldiers a 
happy presage of victory ! The bag-pipes of the Highlanders would 
thrill every soul in the armada with the pibroch, or an expert bugle- 
man electrify the multitude by causing the hills and the glens to echo 
with the stirring notes wound from his instrument. Indeed, the effect 
of the varying and shifting movements of the barges among the islands, 

[12] 



U8 WAvSHINGTON COUNTY ; ITvS HISTORY. 

with their different streamers tiuttering in the air. now shooting" in this 
direction, and now running in that — was exceedingly fine, animating" 
and romantic. Taking these movements in connection with the nodding 
of plumes, the dazzling" glitter of the uniforms, and the flashing of the 
oars, as at every stroke they rose from the sparkling" waters, the whole 
prospect was of surpassing magnificence. Far different was the scene 
presented the following day, when amid the lengthening shadows of the 
mountains, a solitary barge bore back the remains of him, who was 
the soul of the expedition — Lord Howe. 

The landing of the troops was effected in good order in a cove on the 
west side of the Lake at noon of the following day. Here the troops, 
having been joined by Sir William Johnson, with three hundred 
Indians, formed in four columns and began their march, leaving behind 
all the artillery and heavy baggage, which could not be transported 
until the bridges, that the advanced guard of the enemy had burned in 
their retreat, could be rebuilt. The purpose of Abercromby was to 
hasten forward and carry Ticonderoga by storm before the reinforce- 
ments which, it was said, were hastening to the relief of Montcalm 
under De Levy, could arrive. But the British General (like Braddock, 
who was brought up in the same school) could easier manoeuver his 
troops in Hyde- Park, than conduct them through dense and pathless 
woods and over morasses covered with thick and tangled underbrush. 
He grew confused; his guides became bewildered; while, to inci'ease the 
general perplexity, the advance guard fell in with a body of the enemy, 
under De Trepezee, who had also lost their way, and in the skirmish 
that ensued, the gallant Howe, of the Fifty-fifth Regiment, fell at the 
head of his men. He, as well as his brother, the admiral and his successor 
to the title, was very greatly beloved in the army and his death was 
deeph" regretted. He had distinguished himself in a peculiar manner 
by his courage, activity and rigid observance of military discipline, and 
he had acquired the esteem and affection of the soldiery by his frank 
generosity, his sweetness of manner and his engaging address. The 
utter route of De Trepezee's party, however, was but a small compen- 
sation for the loss which the English had sustained in the death of their 
young leader. The fate of this officer, who was the life of the men, at 
once threw a damper and a gloom over the entire army; and from that 
moment "an almost general consternation and languor" took the 
place of its previous confidence and buoyancy. ' Utterly discomfited at 

' koifer's jiuinial. 



DEFEAT OF ABERCROMBY. 1)9 

this untoward occurrence on the very threshold, as it were, of the 
expedition, Abercromby, uncertain what coiirse to pursue, drew back 
his army early the next morning to the landing-place. 

While the British General was yet hesitating, Colonel Bradstreet, 
with Rogers and four hundred rangers pushed forward, rebuilt the 
bridges, and took possession of some saw-mills which the French had 
erected at the lower rapids, about two miles from Ticonderoga. ' The 
indomitable energy of the Provincial Colonel, reassured Abercromby, 
who now advanced to the saw-mills and sent forward Clerk, his chief 
engineer, together with Stark and a few rangers, to reconnoiter the 
enemy's works. The party returned at dusk. Clerk reported, that, 
although to the unpracticed eye, the defences of the French appeared 
strong, yet in reality they would offer but a feeble defence to the charge 
of the British bayonet. The cool Stark, however, was of a different 
opinion. Without doubt recollecting the successful resistance which 
the rude and hastily constructed breastworks of Johnson, three years 
before, had opposed to the flower of the French regulars, he rightly 
judged that the defences of Montcalm were capable of withstanding 
a powerful attack, and so informed Abercromby. 

His advice, however, was rejected by that supercilious commander, 
as worthy only of an ignorant Provincial unacquainted with British 
prowess: and the army having rested on their arms that night, the 
English connnander, early on the morning of the eighth, gave orders to 
advance without artillery, and to carry the enemy's works at the point 
of the bayonet. 

For the defence of Ticonderoga against the formidable preparations 
of the English, Montcalm had but thirty-six hundred and fifty men. 
Instead, however, of despairing, he caused a heavy breastwork to be 
constructed within six hundred paces of the main works; while, at the 
same time, huge trees were felled, and laid with their branches outward, 
for a distance of a hundred yards in front of the log-breastworks. 
Having thus constructed a strong chivaux de /rise, defended by a strong 
force in its rear, which could not be reached without the greatest 
exertions, especially in the absence of cannon, Montcalm threw off 
his coat in the trenches; and, forbidding his men to fire a musket imtil 
he should give the word, calmly awaited the approach of the British. 

I These rapids are caused by the descent of the waters of Lake George into Lake Champlain. 
The outlet of Lake George is four miles in length, and in that distance falls about 157 feet. 



)FC. 



100 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

At one o'clock, the English, preceded by Major Rogers and his sharp- 
shooters, advanced gallantly in four columns to the attack, the Highland 
soldiers of the Forty-second being placed in the rear. At the first 
onset, the ranks of the English were thrown into dire confusion by the 
branches of the trees; and at the same time, at a signal from Montcalin, 
a terrific fire was opened upon the assailants from swivels and small 
arms. In vain was it that the English in the first rank rallied and 
endeavored again and again to penetrate through the trees to the 
entrenchments beyond. ' The more they struggled the more they became 
entangled in the branches while rank after rank was mowed down by 
the well directed and galling fire of the enemy. At this point the gallant 
Highlanders could endure their position no longer. Impatient of their 
position in the rear, they rushed forward, hewed their wa)- through the 
obstacles with their broadswords, and, since no ladders had been 
provided, made strenuous efforts to carry the chevanx de frize^ partly 
by mounting on each other's shoulders and partly b}- fixing their feet 
in holes which the}' had excavated with their swords and bayonets in 
the face of the work.' But their bravery was to no purpose. The 
defenders were so well prepared that the instant an assailant reached 
the top, that instant he was thrown down or shot. At length, after 
great exertions, Capt. John Campbell, one of the tw'o soldiers who had 
been presented to George II at Whitehall in 1743, and a handful of val- 
iant followers forced their way over the breastworks, only to be instanth^ 
dispatched by the bayonet. Finally, driven from the left, the assaulting 
part}^ attempted the center, then the right, till at length after sustaining 
wdthout flinching, the enemy's fire for over five hours, they retreated 
in the utmost disorder, having lost in killed and wounded the appalling 
number of nineteen hundred and sixteen men." Notwithstanding this 
terrible loss, the soldiers had become so exasperated by the opposition 
which they had encountered, and by the loss of so many of their comrades, 
that they coi:ld, with difficulty, be recalled. Indeed, the Highlanders in 
particular, were so obstinate that it was not until the third peremptory 
order from the General that Lieutenant-Colonel Cxrant, the commanding 

> The " Black Watch:' " ihe Kt-cord of an Historic Re.Lrimeiit " New York, iSgS. 

2 111 reading tlie reports of the late engaKements in South Africa between the Boers antl the 
]5ritish forces — particularly the one at the Modder River, I have been greatly struck with the 
fuss and exaggeration made over the fact that some 400 of Gen. Methuen's command were killed 
and wounded — This statement, moreover, being heralded with that General's announcement "that 
not even in the annals of British warfare wasthere ever such slaughter, &c., &c.*' In view of the 
above, how ridiculous such statements appear ! 



DEFEAT OF ABERCROMBY. 101 

officer of the regiment, was able to prevail on them to withdraw, after 
more than one-half of his men and twenty-five of his officers had been 
either killed or desperately wounded. "The attack," wrote Grant, 
afterward, in commenting upon the event, ' ' began a little past one in 
the afternoon, and about two the fire became general on both sides. It 
was exceedingly hea\y and without any cessation, insomuch that the 
oldest soldiers never saw so furiou;- rnd incessant a fire. The affair at 
Fontenay was nothing to it — I saw both. We labored under insurmount- 
able difficulties. The enemy's breastworks were about ten feet high, 
on the top of which they had plent}" of wall-pieces fixed * * They 
had taken care to cut down monstrous large trees. This not onl}- broke 
our ranks, but put it entirely out of our power to advance till we had 
■cut our way through. I had seen inen behave with courage and reso- 
lution before that day, but so much determined bravery can .scarcely be 
paralleled. Even those who lay mortalty wounded cried aloud to their 
companions not to mind or waste a thoug'ht upon them, but to follow 
their officers and remember the honor of their country. * * * 'pj^g 
remains of the regiment (the Forty-second) had the honor to cover the 
retreat of the army, aad brought off the woiinded as we did at Fontenay. " 
But, notwithstanding this reverse, the British were more than twelve 
thousand strong, with plenty of artillery with which the enemy might 
easily have been driven from their intrenchments. Abercromby, 
however, instead of bringing up his artillery from the landing-place 
where it had been left, and rallying his men, had retreated, upon the 
first news of the defeat, from the mills (where he had remained during 
the fight) leaving orders for the ariny to follow him to the landing; 
and while the entire night was spent by Montcalm in strengthening 
his defences and encouraging his men (the French General not dreaming 
"bi;t that Abercromby would return in force with his artillery to redeem 
his disaster) the English were retreating in the footsteps of their valor- 
ous commander. ' Reaching the landing early on the inorning of the 
ninth, the army in wild aft'right would have rushed into the bateaux 
and Slink the greater portion of them, had not Colonel Bradstreet by 
his coolness convinced them that there was no immediate danger, and 

1 Of what metal, anyway, were these remarkable (xenerals made of. Loudoun and Webb 
were of the same character, while this action of Abercromby reminds one at once of the poltroonery 
of Gates (brought up in the same school, and companions at arms with the above) at the Battle of 
Saratoga, when from a distant eminence a mile from the scene of battle, on Beniis Heights, he 
-watched the ebb and flow of the action— having all his preparations made to retreat should the 
tide of battle go against him ! 



\ 



10-^ WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

prevailed upon them to embark quietty and in good order. Nor, did 
Abercromby breathe freely tmtil, Fort Edward being reached, Lake 
George was between himself and the French, and his artillery and 
ammimition fairly on their way to Albany. 

As soon as the main army reached the head of the Lake, all those of 
the wotmded who conld be sent ahead were conveyed to Fort Edward.. 
" Loads after loads of miserable sufferers," writes Dr. Fitch, who had 
it from the son of an eye-witness, "were brought hither, pale and 
ghastly, to breathe out their dying groans upon the air that so lately 
had resounded with their hearty shouts, and to mingle their dust with 
that of the surrounding plain — their names to perish from earth, and 
not so much as a rude stone set at their graves to indicate to succeed- 
ing generations, that the spot was the hallowed repository of the dead." ' 

Of all that gallant dead who fell on this occasion, the name and place^ 
of two only are preserved to the present day, viz : That of Lord Howe,, 
and of Major Dimcan Campbell of the Forty-second Highland Regiment. 

Regarding Lord Howe, various accounts have been given as to his 
burial place — some authorities stating that he was buried near the present 
village of Ticonderoga, and others equally positive, give Albany. I 
think, however, that there can be no doubt that his reinains were taken 
to Albany for interment. Regarding this, the following extract from 
" The Life of Philip Schuyler" is in point: 

"Two days before the Courier was sent, another boat had passed 
over the Lake, but upon a different errand. It contained the body of 
young Lord Howe, who fell as we have seen, in the first encounter with 
the French in the forest of Ticonderoga. Its arrival upon the sandy 
beach at the head of the Lake was the first intimation to Colonel 
dimming and his coinmand of the great loss the army had sustained. 
None grieved inore sincerely than Major Schuyler, and he asked and 
received permission to convey the dead body of his friend to Albany 
for interment. It was carried on a rude bier to Fort Edward, and 
thence to Albany in a bateati. Major Schuyler caused it to be entombed 
in his family vault, and there it lay many years, when the remains were 
placed in a leaden coffin and deposited under the chancel of St. Peter's- 
church in that city. They rest there still. AVe have observed that Lord 
Howe, as an example for his soldiers, had ciit his fine and abundant 

1 In making excavations for cellars, sewers, &c., in the vicinity of the Village of Fort Edward,, 
at points distant from any spots suspected of having been occupied as places of interment, rows 
of human skeletons are sometimes unearthed— the date of whose burial is,, of course, entirel>r 
conjectural. 



BURIAL OF LORD HOWE. lo:j 

hair very short. When his remains were taken from the Schuyler vault 
in 1859 for re-entombment, his hair had grown to long, flowing- locks, 
.and was very beautiful. " The ribbon, indeed, as 1 learn from another 
source, that bound it, was yet black and glossy, all, on exposure, sank 
into dust. The reniains, ent;losed in a new chest, were reverently 
placed along the north wall of the modern edifice." 

In Westminster Abbey, there is in the south aisle, a monument erect- 
ed to this gallant officer. The emblematic representation on the monu- 
ment is a figure of the Genius of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, 
in a mournful posture, lamenting the fall of this hero, and the family 
arms, ornamented with military trophies. B-.'neath is the following in- 
scription, in large letters; 

"The Province of Massachusett's Bay, in New England, by an order 
of the Great and General Court, bearing date February ist, 1759, caused 
this monument to be erected to the memory of George, Lord Viscount 
Howe, Brigadier- General of his Majesty's Forces in North America, 
who was slain. July 6, 1758, on the march of Ticonderoga, in the thirty- 
fourth year of his age; in testimony of the sense they had of his ser- 
vices and military virtues, and of the affection their officers and soldiers 
bore to his command. He lived respected and beloved; the public re- 
gretted his loss; to his family it is irreparable." 

Regarding the other hero, Campbell: In the Fort Edward burying 
ground yet (1900) stands a red sandstone slab, the oldest monument, 
according to Dr. Fitch, in the country; ' and though the elements have 

' When the late Dean .Stanley was in this country he spent an evening with tlie late Bishop Wil- 
liams in Hartford. The conversation had turned to the subject of the French and Indian war, and 
the Dean displayed j^i't^'tt knowledge concerning the history of those days. At length Ticonderoga 
was mentioned, and the Englishman asked: " Did you ever hear, bishop, the story of Duncan 
Campbell of Inveraugh ? Well, there happened, shortly after the defeat of Edward the Pretender, 
to be a meeting of gentlemen in the west of Scotland, whose conversation turned upon politica 
isubjects. It was dangerous ground, for part of them were in favor of the family of Hanover, and 
.the rest were partisans of Charles Stuart. The discussion wa.xed hot, and at length swords were 
drawn. The quarrel was only ended when one of the conte.stants fell dead. There lived at that 
time, as they do to-day, near the place of the quarrel, the family of Campbells of Inveraugh. 
Duncan Campbell was then the head of the elan, and to him the unfortunate man appealed for 
protection. With the usual hospitality of a Highlander the Campbell granted him .shelter, and 
swore to defend him in his misfortune. The following day the startling news came to the chief 
that the murdered man was his own cousin, and that he was sheltering the slayer of a kinsman. 
That night the cousin came to Campbell in a dream and demanded of him vengeance for his death. 
The honorable soul of the chieftain revolted from any treachery, and he told his guest of tlie dream. 
Again night came, and a.gain the cousin appeared, asking for retribution. Unable to break his 
vow, Campbell sent his guest away to the mountains under a strong escort and trusted he would 
at length sleep in peace. But at dead of night came that ghastly visitor and said in tones of anger: 
'Duncan Campbell, we will meet at Ticonderoga.' The Highlander awoke next morning with a 
great feeling of relief. Ticonderoga was a word he had never heard, and whether the spirit 



104 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

beaten upon and corroded it for a centnry and a half, its simple legend! 
may still be deciphered by the curious visitor, as follows: 

" Here lyes the Body of Duncan Campbell of Invershaw, Esq., Major 

To The old Highland Regt., Aged 55 Years, Who died the 17th 

July, 1758, of The Wounds He Received In The Attack of 

The Retrenchments of Ticonderoga, or Carillon, 8th of 

July, 1758-" ' 

In view of this grave, as I stood over it in the Fort Edward cemetery 

some years since, and thinking of the battle in which its occupant lost 

his life. Dr. Johnson's words, while writing of his visit to the Hebrides, 

were recalled to my mind with peculiar force: 

' ' Far from me and my friends be such frigid philosophy, as may con- 
duct us indifferent and unmoved over any ground which has been digni- 
fied by wisdom, bravery or virtue. That man is little to be envied, 
whose patriotism does not gain force upon the plain of Marathon, or 
whose piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of lona. '" 

Meantime, while Abercromby had fled to Albany, Fort Edward had 
been made through him a vast hospital and charnel-house. The re- 
mains of his army, however, still occupied a fortified camp on the site 
of Fort William Henry; and for the supply of this camp an immense 
amount of stores was required. These, of course, had to be sent from 

referred to a realm of the other world or was inventing words to scare him he neither knew nor 
cared." " Years went by, and at length Duncan Campbell found himself a major in the Scotch 
rangers under Abercromby in the expedition against the French on Lake George in the summer 
of 1758. The army, the largest ever assembled in America up to that time, had sailed down the 
Lake in a thousand boats and landed near its outlet. To the Scotch Major the name Ticonderoga, 
against which point the expedition was directed, had sounded with an awfiil and ominous import. 
His colonel, by name Gordon-Graham, who knew the story, endeavored to cheer his drooping" 
spirits, but it was with a heavy heart that the Highland chieftain prepared his men for attack. 
The story of that day's disaster is well known; how the brave Lord Howe fell early in the action; 
how the brawny Scotchman attempted to scale the breastworks, and how at length the retreat was 
sounded after the loss of 2,000 men. Mortally wounded, Duncan Campbell was carried from the 
field, and breathed his last in the hospital at Fort Edward. Just before his death he said to Gordon- 
(iraham: " As I slept last night after the battle,' Colonel, ' the spirit of my cousin came to me and 
said, 'Duncan Campbell, we have met at Ticonderoga.' 'Such,' said the Dean, in conclusion^ 
' is the ghost story of Ticonderoga ' as I have heard it from the present Campbells of Inveraugh, 
the descendants of the unfortunate Duncan." The Bishop had listened with great interest to the 
tale, and at its close said: "Your story, Dean, is new to me, but I now recollect that I have .seen 
the grave of Duncan Campbell at Fort Edward. It is marked by a crumbling slab that tells of his- 
death from a wound received in the attack on Ticonderoga, July 8, 1758." Thus it happened that 
one of the only men in England who knew the strange story of the Scotch major told it by a 
peculiar chance, to pei'haps the only man in America who had noticed the existence of that 
neglected grave. 

2 From this rude epitaph it will be seen that Major Campbell lingered at Fort Edward for sev- 
eral days after receiving his wound. 



DEFEAT OF ABERCROMBY 105 

Albany, and for their transportation, teamsters with their wagons and 
horses, were impressed without ceremony, greatly, of course, to the 
chagrin of their drivers. It is to be remembered, also, that all that 
part of the route above Fort Edward was through a trackless forest, 
"which," says Dr. Fitch, "from what has been told me, is by the de- 
scendants of these teamsters, still remembered as having been dark, 
gloomy and dismal in the extreme;" for everywhere, and behind each 
tree, an enemy could lurk in ambush, and fire upon the luckless travel- 
ler with scarcely a moment's warning. Prowling parties of Indians 
and Canadians, coming from Ticonderoga up Lake Champlain and 
South Bay, so infested the route that it was an almost daily occurrence 
for the transportation trains to be intercepted and plundered. Indeed, 
almost every step between che present Village of Sandy Hill and Lake 
George became tracked with blood, even that portion of Washington 
county near the mouth of the Battenkill, not escaping. In illustration 
of this last statement, the following incident, taken frotn a writer, 
known as the Sexagenary,' is in point. He relates that his father was 
one of the teamsters thus impressed. "When," he says, "my father 
reached the Battenkill," lie discovered the wet print of a moccasin upon 

1 This writer has never been known by his true name. He evidently, however, was well post- 
ed, as may be judged from his various narraticms. 

" The Battenkill, one of the tributaries of the Hudson River, rises in the township of Dorset, 
Vermont, among the Green Mountains, and, flowing rapidly through Manchester, turns to the west 
in the north part of .Sunderland. Thence, passing through Arlington, it crosses the County of 
Washington between Cambridge and Salem, Easton and Greenwich, and, after a picturesque 
fall, discharges its waters into the Hudson at the south-west corner of Greenwich, and about 
three-quarters of a mile north of the Village of Schuylerville, N. Y., on the opposite bank of that 
river. The designation "Battenkill," (the Indian name of which was Dionoondehowee) is a re- 
markable example of a name now entirely lost by contraction. Its origin (as I am sure my Wash- 
ington county readers would like to know) was as follows: A Dutchman named Bartholomew 
\'an Hogeboom was the first settler at the mouth of this creek, and it was named Bartholomew's 
Kill. He was usually called "Bart" or "Bat" for short, and the creek came thus to be called 
■ Bat's Kill." It now appears on our maps and in gazetteers as Battenkill^ thus giving scarcely 
a hint of its origin. For the benefit of the followers of old Isaack Walton, of which guild I am one, 
I hereby append a clipping from a Washington county paper. The Cambridge Post of August 15, 
1887, says : Fishermen had only fair luck the first of May. At an early hour the brook was lined. 
The Battenkill was so high that it was impossible to do anything in it, and so resort was had to the 
smaller brooks. The fi.sh were coy and did not bite well, and the total number taken was much 
smaller than last year. [The fish referred to is, of course, the trout.] This was partly compensated 
for, however, by the size of some that were taken. H. M. Wells [a resident, I believe, of Wash- 
ington countj'] was 'high brook.' He captured a beauty at the old ' Wilco.x Bridge,' south of 
this village, 20 1-2 inches long, and weighing two pounds and thirteen ounces. James L. Smart 
caught a pound and a half fish in Battenkill, and John Rice one of the same weight in the ' Fur- 
nace Brook;' George L. Williams captured a pound fish, and Irving Willard displayed a fine mess 
caught, it is said, in a ' fly manner ' with a silver hackle. The snow water is running yet, and it will 
be some days before the fishing will be prime." 

[13 J , 



JO(i WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

one of the rocks. They were confident from this circumstance that 
hostile Indians were near them. Soon after this discovery a report of 
a mnsket informed them that the enemy was near. I should have men- 
tioned that a small escort was marching- down the west side of the Hud- 
son to protect the wagons; and, therefore, when this firing- was heard, 
a party of us was sent over the river to ascertain the cause of the firing. 
They were not unsuccessful; for, in a garden belong;ing to a Mr. De 
Ruyter," the body of a dead man was found, which was still warm. His 
scalp had been taken off, and from appearances, he seemed to have 
been shot while in the act of weeding one of his garden beds. This 
established the alarming fact that the French, taking advantage of 
Montcalm's victory, had boldly extended their incursions within the 
lines of the English posts." This incident is here especially mentioned 
as showing that Washington county was already beginning to be set- 
tled. 

Another teamster who, although a resident of Albany, was often 
called into service in the CommissatTs Department, also met with a 
remarkable and dangerous experience. His grandson, Colonel P'ort — 
long a respected resident of Fort Edward — gave an account of it to Dr. 
Fitch. I give it entire to show the reader the vicissitudes and dangers 
to which the early settlers of Washington county were exposed in those 
trying times. Col. Fort says: " On one occasion, having discharged 
his load at Lake George, and being anxious to get back to his home 
with all speed, my g^randfather, though the day was far spent, started 
on his return. He became aware, however, of the temerity of this step, 
when, as night was drawing near, he heard the report of a gun not far 
distant from him, and soon afterward passed the body of a dead man 
beside the road. But it was now equally as hazardous to retiirn to the 
Lake as to go forward. He, therefore, continued upon his dangerous 
way in those dreary woods,'' but had only proceeded about two miles 
south of Bloody Pond, when night came on, and so dark that it became 
impossible for him to distinguish the road. There was, therefore, no 
alternative but for him to stop all alone in the forest until morning-. 
He, accordingly, unharnessed his horses, and, turning- their heads to the 
wagon, tied them. Then, wrapping- himself in a blanket, he laid down in 

1 'rhis Mr. iJe Ruvter w;is an ancestor of .\Ir. DeKidder of the Citizens National Hank in 
.Saratoga Sprinifs, N. V. 

- I have walked the same path as Colonel b'ort. in the dark, and it was dreai^y enouirh. thouijh 
1 had no fear of a bullet from a liirkin.u; savai^'e ! 



DEFEAT OF ABERCRO.MBY. 1(17 

the wagon-box. Biit, on second thought, pursnaded that the noise of 
the wagon must have been heai'd, and that an enemy was pursuing 
him, and was, perhaps, near by, he noiselessly crept from the wagon, 
and laid himself upon the reaches under the wagon-box, as the most 
secure spot he could find. He had laid there about an hour, when two 
Indians stealthily approached, probably supposing he was now asleep, 
and cautiously felt about in the box. At this time, my grandfather's heart 
was thumping so violently that it seemed to him they would surely 
hear the noise it made. He might now have shot down one of the In- 
dians, and stood an equal chance for his life in a grapple with the other; 
but his only weapon was a rude pistol made from the butt of an old 
gun-barrel set in a straight stock, and by no means sure of fire; be- 
sides, other Indians might be at hand to rush to the spot, should an 
alarm be given. So he laid still — all but his heart, which continued 
beating. The Indians finding he was not in the wagon-box, gave a 
grunt; and helping themselves to a few light articles, withdrew. My 
grandfather had now become so stiff and sore from his C(mfined posi- 
tion, that he could endure it no longer. He, therefore, crept away into 
a neighboring thicket in the forest, where he laid till morning. He 
then started on, and to his great relief, was soon overtaken by four 
other wagons, with an escort of ten soldiers, which made the remainder 
of his joitrney safe. After the war, he settled upon a fine and well- 
known farm a mile below North Hoosic, and, retaining his bodily and 
mental powers in a remarkable degree, died there in 1822, aged ninety- 
two years. " 

Great was the consternation among the Colonists, at the repulse of 
the gallant army (which, at great sacrifice, they had contributed so 
much to raise) that had so recently gone forth from among them, as 
they supposed, to a sure victory. A panic seized the inhabitants along 
the whole of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys. Every rumor, no 
matter how wild or absurd, was quickly spread, and eagerly believed. 
A small party of Indians who had attacked a convoy of wagoners at 
Half-Way Brook between P'ort Edward and Lake George, was magni- 
fied by the excited citizens of Albany into a large army following the 
retreating footsteps of the English; and when, a few days later, the 
same party waylaid and defeated a body of rangers under Rogers and 
Putnam who had been sent out to intercept them, the rumor reached the 
settlements that the French army was on its march to Albany, and had 
advanced as far as Fort Edward. In Schenectady and Albany, the 



u 



108 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

militia, by order of Sir William Johnson, were called out, and the 
guards doubled; while for additional, protection, large numbers of men, 
especially detailed for that purpose and stationed in block-houses, kept 
a sharp watch by night and by day. 

This gloom was soon dissipated by the brilliant victories which fol- 
loMxd. It were bootless, however, and not to the purpose in a History 
of Washington County, to go into details regarding the subsequent 
conquest of Canada and its formal surrender to the English by the 
Peace of 1763. Suffice it to say, for the benefit of the reader, that all 
the expeditions planned by that great Commonner, Pitt, were entirely 
successful; but, although the fall of Du Quesne (now Pittsburgh) placed 
the result of the war beyond all doubt; yet Niagara, Ticonderoga and 
Crown-Point were still in the possession of the French; and until those 
posts had been relinquished by the latter, it was evident there could be 
no security for the frontiers. It was, therefore, determined by Pitt, that 
while the early summer should witness the reduction of Niagara and 
the forts upon Lake Cham plain. General Wolfe, by a bold push, should 
make himself master of Quebec. In accordance with this plan, the 
military operations of this year were entrusted to Sir Jeffries Amherst, 
who, late in the fall of 1758, had been appointed Commander-in-Chief 
of his Majesty's forces in America, in place of Abercromby who, as we 
have seen, had been recalled. To soiind judgment, he united deter- 
mined energy; and while the operations of his mind were slow, they were 
reliable, methodical, and though, perhaps, at times, plodding, yet when 
necessity arose for decisive action, he was not found wanting. On the 
22d of July, 1759, he appeared with eleven thousand men before Ticon- 
deroga. The French, thereupon, knowing all resistence to be hopeless, 
blew up their walls and retired to Crown-Point. Amherst, with habit- 
ual caution tarried several days to repair the walls; and on the fourth 
of August, embarked on the Lake and took possession of Crown-Point, 
which the French had also abandoned at his approach. Meanwhile, 
Niagara had fallen; and all that remained in the hands of the enemy 
was Quebec. This citadel at length gave way under the attack of 
General Wolfe though at the expense of his death, and that also of the 
gallant Montcalm; and the shattered army of the French, fleeing to 
Montreal, Admiral vSaunders, with one thousand prisoners, bore away 
for England. Thus were the English left in undisputed possession 
of the basin of the Ohio; and the evening guns, from the waters of 
Lake Erie to the confluence of the Ohio with the Mississippi, saluted 



THE FALL OF QUEBEC. 109 

the ilag of England which now waved proudly in the evening breeze. 
The news of the fall of Quebec was hailed both in England and 
America with acclamations of joy. In England, a day was set apart for 
public thanksgiving; and in America the Colonists burned bonfires 
throughout the land. Yet amid all of these rejoicings, the glory of the 
victory was fringed with gloom for the loss of the gallant Wolfe; and 
with the universal delight, was mingled a deep and heartfelt sorrow at 
his untimely end. Parliament commemorated his services in a monu- 
ment in Westminster Abbey; and Massachusetts, holding him in kindly 
remembrance, voted to his memory a marble statue. The young 
general was worthy of all these expressions of affection. To a passion- 
ate fondness for his profession of arms, and a warm love for polite 
letters, he united a singular modesty; and though he possessed a reputa- 
tion wide as the civilized world, yet, in the quaint language of Jeremy 
Taylor, " as if he knew nothing of it, he had a low opinion of himself, 
and, like a fair taper, when he shined to all the room, yet about his own 
station, he had cast a shadow and a cloud, and he shined to everybody 
but himself." ' 

1 The Canadian (lovernnit-nt having' so far iiqooi declined In take any aetinn with regard to the 
future of the historic Plains of Abraham, the scene of Wolfe's victory and death, the nuns of the 
Ursuline convent, who are its freehold proprietaries, have had, recently, the property surveyed and 
laid out in building l')t;;. The action is the cause (so says Canadian paper) of the utmost indigna- 
tion not only throughout the Doininion of Canada, but, also, in niany parts of (ireat Britain and 
the United States, if one may judge by the protests from historical societies and others received 
by the Quebec Literary and Historical Society, which is taking a leading part in the agitation 
against the execution of the project. Some of the American protests say that the Anglo-Saxon popu- 
lation of the United States are equally the heirs with Englishmen and Canadians of Runny mede 
and the Plains of Abraham, and that Wolfe's great victory over Montcalm decided the fate not 
only of what is now the Dominion of Canada, but also of the entire North American continent. 
I^ecent researches have brought to light both the origin of the name of these plains and the title to 
rhe property of the Ursviline nuns. In 1648 and 1652 one Adrien Duchesne, who had obtained a 
i;rant from the French Government of thirty acres of this land, transferred it, in two lots, to Abra - 
ham Martin, who was described at the time as Pilot for the St. Lawrence to the King of France. 
In 1650 twelve acres of land were conceded to Martin by the Compagnie de la Nouvelle, France, 
This Abraham Martin was a man of considerable note in the infant colony, and Champlain, the 
I'Vench Governor of New France and the founder of Quebec, stood sponsor to one of his children. 
He was frequently referred to in the parish re.gi.ster of Quebec of his time and in the journal of 
the Jesuits as Maitre Abraham, and thus the property owned by him, which was destined to be- 
come the scene of one of the world's most famous battles, came to be known as the Plains of Abra- 
ham. Aftsr his death his heirs, in 1667. sold thirty-two acres of his property, comprising the site 
of the future battle-field, to the Ursuline nuns. In 1802 the War Department of the British Govern- 
ment leased this property from the nuns for a period of ninety-nine years, paying a rental there- 
;.ir of two hundred dollars a year. It is the approaching expiration of this lease in 1901 that gives 
■he nuns of the convent the opportunity to attempt the act of public desecration so loudly con- 
demned from one end of the country to the other. Property has undoubtedly increased in value 
in the vicinity of the plains, and the government of the country will suffer much in public esti- 
mation if it does not step in before it is too late, and either purchase, by expropriation or other- 
wise, the entire property, or else renew a lease of it upon whatever terms are possible. .Strange 



no WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 



CHAPTER X. 



175S. 

Cj,osk of the Fkknch Wak — Piinam CAi'ri'RED a.nd a Pkisoxkk jn Canada- — 
The QrACKKNKoss Advknukk Nkak Sandy Hiij. — Lessmns Deri\ kd fkom ihk 
War. 

In the three preceding" chapters, 1 have endeavored to present a sue- 
einct acconnt of the several campaigns — ending with the Peace of i 763 — 
which were undertaken for the subjugation of Canada; and in order 
that they inight be presented in a comprehensive view, and as a whole,. 
I have given them in sequence. Now, however, in this chapter, I pro- 
pose to give an account of one or two forays of the Partizans on the 
American side, as well as the Indian massacres which occurred in 
Washington county during those great campaigns, so that these, being 
considered separately, may not confuse the reader. 

After the defeat of Abercromby, as related in the last chapter, the 
war of predator}" forays between the French and English again began. 
On the 30th of July, 1758, our old friend. La Corn de St. Luc,, 
with a large force of Canadians and Indians, destroyed a train between 

to say, the same Ursuline nuns po.ssess other remarkable relics of the conflict between Montcalm 
and Wolfe. In the chapel of their convent, beneath an imposing' marble bearing an inscription 
compiled under the direction of the French Academy, are interred the mortal remains of Mont- 
calm, with the exception of the skull. This, as many American sight-seers may know from 
experience, is preserved under a glass ca.se in the parlor of the convent and frequently shown to- 
visitors. The grave in which the body of the French general reposed for many years was a cavity 
beneath the flooring of the convent chapel, which had been e.xcavated by a cannon-ball fired from 
the invading fleet. Up to the time of the withdrawal of the British troops from Canada in 1871', the 
Plains of Abraham were u.sed as a drill and parade ground. Then, like the citadel itself, they were- 
kept in exquisite order; and a distinguished author relates that "a sweet girl from Boston one day 
said to Colonel Nicol, the commandant of Quebec: "We are very much obliged to you for all the- 
trouble and expense this fine place has cost you, and for the care you take of it. We are, really, you 
know it's all for us' " And, adds the writer already quoted: " Great was the pity that the gallant 
commandant, whose single demerit consists in being an old bachelor, did not try to secure this fair 
hostage for the future good behavior of her countrymen." Since 1871 the lease of the plains has 
been turned over by the British authorities to the Canadian Government. Many unavailing 
efforts have been lately made by French writers to detract from the value and importance of 
Wolfe's great victory. Abbe Ferland thus attributes treason to Captain de Vergor, the French 
officer who was in charge of the post at the summit of the steep ascent from the St. Lawrence to 
the plains, where Wolfe and his men clainbered up and took the captain prisoner. The French- 
Canadian historian, Garneau, estimates the strength of Wolfe's army at 8000 and Montcalm's at 
4,500. Colonel Beatson, of the Royal Engineers, in a history of the Plains of Abraham, published 
by him at (Gibraltar, places the number of Montcalm's force at 7,500, and Wolfe's at 4,828. The 
more modern estimate of Bancroft gives the strength of 5000 fighting men to each, of the two. 
armies. 



THE BATTLE OF KIX(iSBURV. Ill 

Fort Edward and Lake George, killing- a hundred and ten men and 
taking- captive eighty-four prisoners. Majors Putnam and Rogers were 
immediately dispatched in pursuit of the marauders. 

THE BATTLE OF KINGSBURY. 

At South Bay the party separated into two equal divisions — Rogers 
taking up a position on Wood-Creek, twelve miles distant from the 
Town of Putnam. ' Upon being, some time afterward, discovered, they 
formed a reunion, and concerted measures for returning to Fort 
Edward. Their march through the woods was in three divisions, by 
files; the right commanded by Rogers, the left by Putnam, and the 
centre by Captain Dalzell. The first night they encamped on the banks 
•of Clear River, a branch of Wood-Creek, and about a mile from old 
Fort Anne, which, as it will be recalled, had been built by General 
Nicholson, and two miles north of the present \"illage of Kingsbury. 
The following morning (August yth) ]\Iajor Rogers and a British officer 
named Irwin, incautiously suffered themselves, fi'om a spirit of false 
emulation, to be engaged in tiring at a target. Nothing could have 
been more repugnant to the military principles of Putnam than such 
conduct, or reprobated by him in more pointed terms. As soon as the 
heavy dew, which had fallen the previous night would permit, the 
detachment' moved in a body, Putnam being in front, Dalzell in the 
centre and Rogers in the rear. The impervious growth and tinderbrush 
that had sprung up, where the land had been partially cleared some 
3'ears before, occasioned this change in the order of march. At the 
very moment of moving, the French Partizan Marin,' who had been 
sent with five hundred men to intercept Putnam's party — of whose 
movements he had doubtless been well informed by his scouts — was 
not more than one mile and a half distant from them. Having heard 
the firing at the mark, h-e hastened to lay an ambuscade precisely in 
that part of the wood most favorable to his project. Major Putnam 
was just emerging from the thicket into the open forest, when the 
enemy rose ; and with discordant yells and terrible war-whoops, began an 
attack on the right of his division. Surprised, but undismayed, Putnam 

• Putnam, tin.' cKtremu nortlieru town of Wasliin.ijluti County, and naniL-d aftL-r the daring 
Partizan ranjfer, was taken r'nini WcsttiL-ld in 181/1. Thf Palniefslun iiimintain in tliis town rises 
to the height of \yM feet. 

■-' Also written Morauij. 



112 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

halted, returned the fire, and passed the word for the other divisions tO' 
advance to his support. Dalzell at once came to his aid ; and the action,, 
the scene of which was widely scattered, and principally fought between 
man and man. soon grew general and intensely warm. It would be as 
difficult as useless, to describe at length this irregular and ferocious 
mode of fighting. Rogers did not come to Putnam's assistance; but,, 
as he afterwards declared, formed a circular file between the English 
and Wood-Creek, to prevent their being taken in the rear or enfiladed.. 
Successful, as he generally was, his conduct, on this occasion did not 
pass without unfavorable comment. Notwithstanding, it was a current 
saying in the camp " that Rogers always sent^ but Putnam Ay/ his men 
to action, yet, in justice to Putnam, it should be said, that the latter 
has never been known — at least, so says his biographer— in relating the 
story of this, day's disaster, to affix any stigma upon the conduct of 
Major Rogers. 

At length, Putnam perceiving that it would be impossible to cross 
the Creek, determined, at least, to maintain his ground; and, inspired 
by his example, the officers and men behaved with great braver}^'. vSome- 
times they fought in a body in open view of the enemy, and again, 
individually behind trees, taking aim from their several positions and 
acting entirely independently of one another — each man for himself. 
Putnam, having discharged his musket several times, it at length missed 
fire, just as its muzzle was pressed against the breast of a stalwart In- 
dian. This Savage, availing himself of the indefensible attitude of 
his adversary', sprang forward, with a tremendous war-whoop, and with 
an uplifted hatchet, compelled him to surrender. Then, having dis- 
armed and bound him, he returned to the field of strife. 

Meanwhile, the courageovis Captains, Dalzell and Harman,whonow, in 
the absence of Putnam, assumed the command, were forced to give way 
for a little distance ; and the Indians, taking this to be a sure sign that 
the eneiny were defeated, rushed impetuously on with dreadful and re- 
doubled cries of victory. But our two Partizans, collecting a handful 
of brave men, gave the pursuers so warm a reception as to force them; 
in turn to retreat a little beyond the spot at which the action had be- 
gun. Here, they made a determined stand ; but this change of ground 
brought the tree, to which Putnam was tied, directly between the fire 
of the two parties. Imagination can scarcely conceive of a more de- 
plorable situation. The bullets flew incessantly from either side ; many 
struck the tree ; while a number passed through the sleeves and skirts. 



PUTNAM TAKEN PRISONER. li:? 

of his coat I In this state of jeopardy, unable to move his body, to stir 
his limbs, or even to incline his head, he remained more than an hour — ■ 
so equallv balanced and so obstinate was the fight ! At one moment, 
while the battle seemed in favor of the enemy, a young- Indian chose 
an odd wav of discovering- his humor. Einding- Putnam bound, he 
might easilv have dispatched him by a blow. Choosing-, however, to 
excite the terrors of the prisoner, he kept hurling- his tomahawk at his 
head — his object seeming' to be to see how near he could come without hit- 
ting- him — and, indeed, so skillful was this Indian youth, that the weapon 
buried itself several times in the tree at a hair breadth's distant from Put- 
nam's head! Finally, when the young; vSavage had finished his amuse- 
ment, a French officer — a much more inveterate Savage by nature, 
though descended from so human and polished a nation ! — perceiving 
the bound captive, came up to him, and, levelling a fuzee within a 
foot of his breast, attempted to discharge it. Fortunately, however, 
it missed fire. Putnam, thereupon, endeavored to solicit from this offi.- 
cer the treatment due to his situation, by repeating strongly that he 
was a prisoner of war. But the chivalric ! Frenchman had no ears for 
the language either of honor or nature. Deaf to its voice and dead 
to sensibility, he violently and repeatedly, pushed the muzzle of his 
gun against Putnam's ribs, finally giving him a cruel blow on the jaw 
with the butt end of his musket. After this dastardly deed, he left 
him. 

At length, the active intrepedity of Dalzell and Harman, seconded 
by the persevering bravery of their followers, prevailed. The}' drove 
from the field the enemy, who left about ninety of their dead behind 
them. As they were retiring, or rather retreating, Putnam was untied 
by the Indian who had made him prisoner, and whom he afterward 
called " Master." Having been conducted for some distance from the 
scene of action, he was stripped of his coat, vest, stockings and shoes; 
loaded with as many of the packs of the wounded captives as could be 
piled upon him; strongly pinioned, and his wrists tied as closely to- 
gether as they could be pulled with a cord. After he had marched 
through (as may be imagined) no pleasant paths in this painful manner, 
and for many a tedious mile, the party, who were excessively fatigaied, 
halted to breathe. Putnam's hands had now become terribly swoolen 
from the tightness of the ligature ; and the pain had become well nigh 
intolerable. His feet, also, were so much scratched that the blood 

[14J 



114 WAvSHKNGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

began to ooze out of them. P'inally, exhausted with bearing- a burden 
above his strength, and frantic with these continued torments now 
became bej'ond hmnan endurance, he entreated an Irish interpreter, 
who was with the party, to implore, as the last and only grace he desired 
of the Indians, that they would knock him on the head and take his 
scalp at once, or loose his hands. A French officer, happening to be 
passing by at that time, and hearing I'utnam's request, instantly inter- 
posed and ordered his hands to be unbound, and some of the packs to 
be taken off. By this time the Indian who had captured him, and had 
been absent with the wounded, coming up, gave him a pair of moccasins 
and expressed great indignation at the unworthy treatment his captive 
had suffered. 

The vSavage again returned to the care of the wounded ; and the 
Indians, about two himdred in number, went before the rest of the 
party to the place where the whole were that night to encamp. They 
took with them Major PtUnam, on whom, besides innumerable other 
outrag-es, the)' had the barbarity to inflict, they made a deep wound 
with the tomahawk in the left cheek. His sufferings were in this place 
to reach their height. Indeed, a scene of horror, infinitely greater than 
had ever met his eyes before, was now preparing. It was determined 
to roast him alive. Accordingly, and as preparatory to this holocaust, 
he was led into a dark forest, stripped naked, bound to a tree, while a 
lot of dried brush with other combustibles was piled in a circle around 
him. His torturers, meanwhile, accompanied their labors, as if for his 
funeral dirge, with screams and whoops and all the sounds they could 
conceive of to make the scene more diabolical. The fuel was then set 
on fire. A sudden shower, however, extinguished the rising flames; but 
more unmerciful than the elements, the Indians rekindled them until 
the blaze ran fiercely round the circle. Putnam soon began to feel the 
scorching heat. His hands were so tied that he could move his body; 
and he often shifted his position as the fire approached. His eft'orts 
thus made, .seemed to afford the greatest delight to his tormentors, who 
manifested their joy by shouts and dancing. Putnam, now seeing that 
his hour had surely come, summoned all his resolution and fortitude 
and composed his mind, as far as circumstances would admit, to bid an 
eternal farewell to all he held most dear. To quit the world in itself 
would scarcely have cost him a single pang; but for the idea of home 
and his domestic ties aside from these thoughts — of which he has left 
an account — the bitterness of death — even of that death, perhaps one 



INHUMAN TREATMENT OF PUTNAM. 115 

of the most dreadful that our physical nature can endure — was in a 
manner passed. Indeed, nature, with a feeble strugg-le, was quitting 
its last hold on earthly things — when, marvellous to relate, a French 
officer rushed through the expectant crowd ; opened a way for himself 
by scattering the burning brands, and unbound the victim. This was 
no other than Marin himself — to whom an Indian, unwilling to see 
another human sacrifice, had run post speed and communicated the 
tidings. The commandant — ever to his honor and fame be it said — • 
spurned and severely reprimanded the Indians, whose nocturnal powwos 
and hellish orgies he thus suddenly ended. Putnam did not lack feeling 
or gratitude. The French commander, fearing to trust him alone with 
them, remained until he could deliver him in safety into the hands of 
his " Master. " 

This Savage approached his captive kindly, and seemed to treat him 
w'ith particular affection. He oft'ered him some hard biscuit ("hard- 
tack " it W'Ould now be called) ; but on finding that he could not chew it, 
by reason of the blow he had received from the Frenchman, this more 
humane Indian soaked some of the biscuit in water and made him suck 
the pulp-like part. Determined, however, not to lose his prisoner, 
(the refreshment being finished) he took the moccasins from his feet 
and tied them to one of his wrists; then, directing him to lie down on 
his back upon the bare ground, he stretched one arm to its full length, 
and bound it fast to a young tree — the other arm, meanwhile, being 
extended and bound in the same manner. His legs, also, were stretched 
apart and fastened to two saplings. Then, a number of tall, but slender 
poles w^ere cut down, which, with some long bushes, were laid across 
his body from head to foot — while, on each side of him lay as many 
Indians as could conveniently find lodging, in order to prevent the 
possibility of his escape. In this disagreeable and painful position, he 
remained until morning. Regarding the silent watches of this long- 
and dreary night, Putnam was wont to relate that he felt a ray of cheer- 
fulness come once in a while across his mind ; and, indeed, could not 
refrain from smiling when he reflected what a ludicrous group this 
scene would have made for a painter, in which he, himself, was the 
principal figure ! 

The following day, he was allowed his blanket and moccasins, and 
also permitted to march without carrying any pack, nor, after this, did 
he receive any insult. Moreover, to allay his extreme hunger, a little 
bear's meat was given him, which he sucked through his teeth. At 



116 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

night the party arrived at Ticonderoga, and I'utnani was placed under 
the care of the French guard. The Indians, who had been prevented 
from ghitting their devilish thirst for blood, took another opportunity 
of manifesting their malevolence for the disappointment by horrid 
grimaces and angry gestures; but they were no longer suffered to offer 
any violence or personal indignity to him. After having been examined 
by that true gentleman, the Marquis de Montcalm, Major Putnam was 
conducted to Montreal by a French officer who treated him whh the 
greatest indulgence and humanit}'.' 

THE ADVENTURE OF JOHN OUACKENROSS AT 
SANDY HILL. 

The following recital, says Dr. Fitch, will bring to the old inhabitants 
of Sand}- Hill, recollections of the story of Captain John vSmith and 
Pocahontas, though it is associated with far more tragic accompaniments. 
This accoimt was given in its present form to Dr. Fitch b}^ the nephew 
of the principal, viz: Jacob Quackenboss of Schaghticoke." 

It seems then, that when this tragedy took place in July, 1757, John, 
son of Cybrant Quackenboss of Albany, was under an engagement of 
marriage to Jane, daughter of Tennis Viele of the same city, when he 
was impressed and required to convey a load of provisions to Lake 
George.'' He had pa.ssed Fort Edward and entered the dark and dreary 
wilderness which stretched from the (ireat Carrying- Place to the Lake, 

1 In Sc])teml)ei-, 1759. Rogers led a furay against tlie \'illage nf St. I*"rancis in Canada, totally 
destroying it and returning sately to Crown-Point, having had only one of his party killed and 
seven wounded. As this raid, however, does not come within the scope of this work, an account 
of it is not given. 

- In a note to this account Dr. I'itch writes in 1841), as follows ; " The thanks of the inhabitants 
of Sandy Hill are due to the New York State Agricultural Societv, that through its instrumentality 
this thrilling incident, which is destined to remain to all coming time as the opening event in the 
hi.story of their beautiful village, has at length been rescued from the apocryphal aspect in which 
it has heretofore been before the public, and presented in an authentic and credible form. '■'■' '■' 
I had re.garded it as fiction, until, by the merest accident, when gathering information upon very 
different topics, the full and circumstantial recital above was given. My informant is a person 
of high respectibility and scrupulous integrity, was unaware that any account had been published 
by Prof. Silliman. He is an entire stranger to the vicinity where it occurred, onlv locating it as 
having taken place somewhere near I^ake George." I may go further than this, and state, that 
had it not been for Dr. Asa Fitch, (who, so modestly, takes no credit for himself) the account 
would have been utterly forgotten, or at least, relegated to the limbo of mythical events. Too much 
praise cannot be given to Dr. Fitch for his untiring historical industry, in preserving the incidents 
in the early history of Washington county. 

* Regarding this impression and the various dangers and viei.ssitudes accompanying it, the 
reader is referred to the chapter immediately perceding this. 



gU ACKENBOvSS' ADVENTURE. 117 

•M'hen he was captured by a formidable party of Indians, who had 
previously waylaid and made capture of sixteen soldiers. The prisoners 
were all taken to where the lovely jj^reen in the centre of the \'illag'e of 
Sandy Hill is now situated, which at that tiriie was a secluded spot in 
the woods. Here they were securely tied and were seated upon the 
trunk of a fallen tree with two or three Indians left to <fiiard them, 
while the remainder hastened away on some further adventure. After 
a time they returned, the captive men still sitting- in a row upon the log, 
(Juackenboss being at one end, and a soldier named McChiinis next to 
him. One of the Indians now went up to the opposite end of the log 
and deliberately sank his tomahawk into the head of the man there 
seated. The victim fell to the earth, and his final quiverings had scarcely 
ceased, when the next man shared the same fate, and in succession the 
next and the next. Nothing more awful can possibly be iinagined 
than the situation of the s\irvivors, compelled to sit still and see death, 
immediate and inevitable, gradually approaching them in this horrid 
form. Soon, of all the seventeen, tw^o only remained, Quackenboss, 
clad in his teamster garb, and McCxuinis in his soldier's uniform. Not 
one of all the slain, had offered the least resistance, so utterly helpless 
were all efforts to avert their fate. And now the death dealing toma- 
hawk was raised to cleave Mc(iuinis down when, with the suddenness 
of a panther's spring, he threw himself backward from the log, striking- 
the ground in a desperate struggle to break his bonds. But in vain. 
Instantly, on every side of the poor fellow, a dozen tomahawks were 
uplifted.' But lying upon his back with his heels flying; he thrust his 
mvirderers oft' in every direction spinning round like a top, till hacked 
and mang-led, and all crimson with his own life's blood which was now 
streaming in every direction from a score of horrid gashes, his eft'orts 
became more and more feeble — when a blow was leveled at his head, 
and all was over. The hapless teamster now alone remained. He 
knew that his moment had come. Already, the fatal tomahawk was 
upraised for the last and finishing stroke, when the arm by which it 
was waelded was suddenly pushed aside by a squaw, as she exclaimed 
" Yoii shan't kill him! He's no fighter! He is ;//)' c/^-'.i,' / ' 'i'^''^ tawny 
warriors acquiesced without a murmur. He was straightway unbound 
and taken in charge by his Indian mistress. A pack of plunder, so 

' I have in my cabinet of the Stone age, two tomahawks dii.u' up from this vorv groi-n in Sandy 
Hill. Perhaps they were those used on this occasii>n I 



118 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

heavy that he could scarcely stand tinder it, was tied upon his baclr 
and the party started off for Canada. 

On arriving- at the Indian village he had to run the gauntlet between 
two rows of Indians, all of whom were armed with clubs. ( )ne of them 
struck hiin so heavy a blow on the head that it all but felled him to the 
earth. He, however, reeled and stumbled onward, kicked and mauled 
on everv side and, with scarce the breath of life left in him, reached the 
end of this most barbarous ordeal. His mistress, the squaw, now took 
him to her wigwam and bound up his wounds and bruises, carefully 
nursing him until he recovered. He asked her why it was that the 
Indians treated him so cruelly? She told him that it w^as because he 
would not dance — though what it was that she meant by this explana- 
tion he could not conjecture, nor did he ever find it out as long as he 
was with her. 

Meanwhile, the Governor of Canada, hearing of his being- a captive 
among the Indians, sent for and purchased him from them, and had 
hiin brought to Montreal, where, learning from him that he was a weaver' 
by trade, he procured him employment in this business both in his own 
and a number of families in and around Montreal — his situation by this 
kindness of the Governor, being rendered comparatively comfortable and 
easy, if, indeed, not remimerative. One thing, however, bore heavily 
upon his mind. His family and his betrothed bride he knew must be 
in a state of ag^onizing suspense with regard to his fate. He, therefore, 
ventured to beg the Governor for permission to write a letter to his 
father to inform him that his son was still alive. The Governor at once 
kindly acceded to his request : and having read the letter which was 
submitted to him, sealed and gave it to a trusty Indian by whom it was. 
brought down as near to Fort Edward as he could venture with safety. 
The Indian travelled down into the vicinity of Fort Edward — as far as 
he could do with safety to himself and, having made a slit in the bark of 
a tree growing beside a frequented path, inserted the letter in this 
primitive post-office box and hastened back to Canada. ' The letter was 
soon afterward discovered by a scout on his way to Fort Edward, and 
safely forwarded to its destination. It gave the family their first intel- 
ligence of one whom they had long since given up as dead. 

1 Smile, as we may, at this novel Post-office, it has not yet gone out of fashion, letters being 
still in the year of our Lord, igoo, left in the Adirondacks by the driver of the mail stage in a slit 
of a tree nearest the receipient's log cabin. This, I have witnessed myself on more than one- 
occasion. 



LESSONS FROM THE WAR. 119 

Qtiackenboss remained a prisoner in Canada, about three years, when 
he was sent home in a vessel which sailed from yuebec to New York. 
It is pleasant to know that, althouiih tmfaithfiil to his Indian mistress, 
he married his first love, Miss Veile, and settled soon afterwards on a 
farm in Cambridji^e, half a mile below Bnskirk's bridge, where he died 
about 1820.' 

In thus closing the histoiy of the French War, I would fain dwell, 
particularly, on the fact that it is a great mistake to suppose that either 
Lexington or Bunker Hill was the first school in which the Colonists 
were taught their ability to struggle with veteran soldiers. It was in 
Washington County, and in the vicinity of Fort Edward, Lake (xeorge, 
and South Bay that this lesson was first learned; and, in fact, it is very 
doubtful if the Colonists would have dared to take the stand they did 
in the beginning of the Revolutionary War, had it not been for the 
lessons received in the " Old P'rench " and the " French War." In the 
territory now known as Washington County, provincial prowess signal- 
ized its self- relying capabilities; and Putnam and vStark came into the 
French War, as to a military academy, to acquire the art of warfare 
which they all exercised at Bunker Hill '' George Washington, himself, 
as a military man, was nurtured for himself and the world amid the 
forests of the Alleghanies and the rifles and tomahawks of these 
French and Indian struggles. Indeed, Fort Edward, Lake George and 
Saratoga are contiguous not merely in territory but, as we have seen, 
in heroic associations; and as these conflicts in Washington county were. 

' Professor Sillini;in, however, in liis Tour fro/ii Ilayifoi-t to Quebec fvirnishes a different version 
j)f the manner in which Ouackenboss was saved. He also, skives another name to the principal, 
in this transaction, vi/.: .Schoonhoven. I believe the story as related in the text to be correct. But 
as everythin,i? relating' to Sandy Hill will be greatly prized by its citizens, I append Prof. Silliinan's 
version. * * * " Mr. Schoonhoven was the last but one upon the end of the log, opposite to where 
the massacre commenced : The work of Death had already proceeded to him, and the lifted 
tomahawk was ready to descend, when a chief gave a signal to .stop the butchery. Then approach- 
ing Mr. Schoonhoven, he mildly said, 'Do you not remember that |at such a time] when your 
young men were dancing, poor Indians came and wanted to dance too, your young men said "No! 
Indians shall not dance with us;' but vou (for it seems, this chief had recognized his features 
only in the critical moment l you said Indians shall dance- now / will show you that Indians can 
remember kindness.' This chance recollection i/'rovideniia/. w-e had better call it) .saved the life 
of Mr. Schoonhoven, and of the other survivor. Strange mixture of generosity and cruelty! For 
a trifling affront, they cherished and glutted ven.geanee, fell as that of infernals, without measure 
of retribution or discrimination of objects; for a favor equally trifling, they manifested magnan- 
imity exceeding all correspondence to the benefit, and capable of arresting the stroke of death, 
even when falling with the rapidity of lightning." This episode of the dancing, taken in connec- 
tion with the squaw's remark to yuackenboss regarding his not dancing &c., would seem to show 
how that part of the story originated— the latter, perhaps, not understanding exactly her remark. 

2 The reader does not. of course, need to hv reminded of the role played by Putnam and Stark 
at this battle. 



120 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITvS HISTORY. 

in a measiire, at least, a source of our present national life, it is emi- 
nently proper and fitting that those, like Putnam and Stark, both of 
whom took such a prominent part, should be commemorated not only 
in story and in song, but in enduring granite and bronze. One, in fact, 
is but the cori'elative of the others. Str/ia mens in cor pore sano is as true 
of the body politic as of the body physical; and, if our existence as a 
united nation is to be preserved, it will be by keeping intact the mental 
and physical energies of the nation. Correlative ideas, envolved under 
varying circumstances, they are proofs of the same spirit of liberty—^ 
the same strong energy of purpose. » 



CHAPTER XI. 



1763-1775- 

Early Skttlements in thk County — Fikst Church Erectku in Salem — The. 
Great New Hampshire Grant Controversy — Prominent Settlers: Judge. 
William Duer, Colonel Skene, Etc, — First Court Held at Fort Edward. 

Although the treaty of Peace, by which Great Britain obtained 
possession of the whole of Canada, was not formally ratified until 1763, 
yet, it was evident that with the fall of Quebec, three years previously, 
the long and bloody war was virtually at an end. Having no fears of 
further Indian raids and atrocities by which the settlement of this 
County (known then as Charlotte County) had been for so long retarded, 
people now began to flock into it in continually increasing numbers — 
taking up land and clearing it of its brushwood and timber, preparatory 
to its cultivation. In fact, the excellence of its soil had long been 
generally known; and it required only the assurance of complete 
freedom from molestation for the future prosperity of the country. 

Many of the new settlers were of vScotch-Irish descent, who settling in 
the present Towns of Argyle, vSalem, Greenwich and Kingsbury* formed 
the nucleus of a God-fearing community — direct traces of their health- 
ful religious influence being felt down to the present day. Indeed, 
almost the first act of these early emigrants — even before completely 
clearing their farms — was to erect at Salem in 1765, a church bviilt of 

' A history of all these towns will be given in its appropriate place, in a separate division of 
this work. 



EARLY SETTLEMENTS. 121 

]^,u>i — tlieir interstices bein<4- filled iu with clay — having" the tioor 
of earth; while the seats were composed of rough, unhewn tim- 
ber laid across blocks of wood. This is supposed to have been 
the first church erected north of Albany. It was , forty feet 
long" and was the largest building" in the County save the barracks 
at Fort Edward. In the same year, the first school- house in 
the Coimty was also built at Salem "of similar materials and of like 
architecture." Over this primitive church, Rev. Dr. Thomas Clark 
was pastor. Dr. Fitch with his usual felicity of expression, calls him 
the "Primitive Apostle of the Northern Wilderness." This divine, 
before the erection of the church, preached the first sermon ever 
delivered in Salem, and perhaps in Washington Cotmty in the snrnmer 
of 1765, in the house of a Mr. James Ttirner, to a few persons who had 
gathered from the surrounding country. Mrs. Edward Savage, who 
died about 1840, related to Dr. Fitch the particulars of her coming to 
this meeting. Then a mere girl, she started early on a Sabbath morn- 
ing from her father's house, seven miles south-west in Argyle now 
Greenwich, and walked alone to her sister's farm (Mrs. Livingston's) 
who accompanied her the remaining distance, which they pursued by a 
row of blazed trees, there being no path, and not a house having been 
then erected on the way. As they emerged from the woods into Mr. 
Turner's clearing, his children espied them; and, surprised at the 
unusual sight, ran into the house exclaiming to their mother that " some 
wojnen yN&VQ coming !" "Had it been bears or "vs'olves, " said Mrs. 
Savage, " they would scarcely have considered the occurrence worth 
reporting." 

After suffering imprisonment in Ireland for refusing to take the oath 
of allegience in its prescribed form by kissing the book (regarding it 
as a remnant of Popish superstition) Dr. Clark came over wath the 
greater part of his congregation, and after a brief sojourn at Stillwater 
finally settled at Salem.' Preliminary, however, to taking this step of 

' "Such a degree of affection, " writes Dr. Fitch, "as subsisted between him and his Hock 
has had few parallels. Unrepelled by the gloomy walls of his prison, parents brought their infant 
children hither for baptism; and hither, also came the betrothed youth and maiden to have the 
marriage ceremony performed. Old pious men went down to their graves, bewailing their sad 
case, in being thus cruelly deprived of their beloved pastor's counsels and prayers in their 
dying moments. Among this number was a venerable elder of his church, Elias, nephew of 
Professor Samuel Rutherford, one of the Westminister Assembly of Divines. From his prison he 
wrote, between January and April, 1754, a series of letters which were read to his congregation on 
the Sabbath,"' These were afterward published in a pamphlet of tifty-two pages. The ne.xt 

[15 J 



122 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

removal from his native land, Dr. Clark had been in correspondence 
with Robert Harper, the Dean of Kino;.s, (now Columbia) colleg-e in 
New York city, fiirnishino- him with the names of one hvmdred families 
who were desirons of emigrating- with him to the colony of New York 
and there taking up land. " To an inhabitant of Salem," writes Dr. 
Fitch, " this list [still preserved] seems like some old assessment roll 
or a similar document of his own town, so familiar do a large number 
of the names upon it sound, and he can scarcely realize that it emanated 
from the other side of the Atlantic nearly a centiuy ago.' " As a result 
of this correspondence, Mr. Harper obtained a warrant from Governor 
Sir Henr}^ Moore, dated November 23d, 1763, to survey a tract of 40, 000 
acres [four hundred acres to each family] north of the present boimdaries 
of Queensbury and Kingsbury on which to locate their families. Thus 
encouraged, Dr. Clark and his affectionate congregation sailed from 
Newry, Ma}' icth, 1764, and arrived safely on the 28th of July of the 
same year in the harbor of New York. In concluding his journal of 
his voyage across the Atlantic, Dr. Clark devoutly writes: "The all- 
gracious (xod carried near three hundred of us safe over the devouring 
deep, in the arms of His mercy. Praised be His name ! "' 

And here, before speaking in detail of other prominent settlers in 
this county, it seems well to dwell at length upon the manner these 
grants of land were obtained, and also of the incipient controversy that 
arose about this time regarding the New Hampshire Grants — which 
controversy to a certain extent affected the tenures by which the settlers 
on the eastern boundary of the county — then extending some miles into 
the present State of ^"ermont— held their farms. 

The lands, granted by the Colonial Governments at this time, were, 
it must be imderstood, not sold outright. No payment was required 
and no money needed to be expended except to the public officials 
through whose hands the warrants passed. The grantees were thus, as 
a matter of fact, given a perpetual lease, an annual (put-rent being 
reserved for the Crown. These cpiit-rents generally consisted of a few 
skins of fur- bearing animals, an ear of corn, or " three grains of wheat " 
if demanded. Besides this, however, an annual quit-rent of two shillings 

regularly ordained minister of whom we have any authoritative knowledjje who ^vas over a congre- 
gation in Washington county was the Rev. Francis Baylor, a Moravian. He was called to a church 
ii Sandy Hill about 1775, but left there in 1777. This church — though since removed a few rods 
from its original site — is still (1900) standing. It was bought some years since by the Catholics and 
after the latter had erected a new edifice, it was, as 1 say, removed. 

1 This was written in 1840. 



LAND GRANTS. r^3 

and sixpence sterHni4" was inaposed on every one hundred acres, besides 
which, all pine trees suitable for masts for the Royal Navy were also 
reserved to the Crown. "We smile,'" says Dr. Fitch, "at the exorbi- 
tance of this last reservation, which is inserted in all the patents issued 
at this period, not only in Washington county but in all parts of the 
colonies, as we recur to the fact that the pine trees growing in some 
single towns in this county [Washington] even if it had been possible 
to fell and transport their b(jdies entire to tide water, would have been 
adequate to supply all the navies in the world with spars for centuries." 
The several Colonial Governors, also, on account of the fees attached 
to the granting of the patents, were guilty of what might at the present 
day be called "an abuse of trust," to the home government, and if an 
individual desired to obtain a grant, say for two thousand acres, he had 
onlv to procure the signature of one of his confidential friends, and 
pay the fees and the affair was completed. ' The fees for the grant of 
one thousand acres were as follows: to the Governor, $31.25; to the 
Secretary of vState $10; to the Clerk of the Council $10 to $15; to the 
Surveyor-General, $14.37; to the Attorney-General, $7.50; to the 
Receiver-General $[4.37; and to the Auditor, $4.62 — making the total 
amount nearly $100. It will thus be seen that the cupidity of these 
various public officials was a great source of detriment to the county by 
retarding its growth and preventing poor but stalwart and honest people 
from settling within its boundaries — for although this amount ($100) 
seems to us at the present day but a trifle, yet to many of the men of 
that time, when money was scarce it was no easy matter to obtain it. 
This sum, also, at that time was equal in its purchasing power fully to 
$400. 

Then again, there were numerotis grants of lands made to the 
discharged officers and privates of the French War, a large number 
of which were located in this county. This brought in a class of inhabi- 
tants that as a general thing were not desirable — though some of these 
men made good citizens; and, taken all in all, were perhaps eventually, 
a source of credit to the county. The Royal Proclamation, by which 
these grants were given, after a general preamble, closed as follows: 
"and whereas we are desirous, upon all occasions, to testify our royal 
sense of approbation of the conduct and bravery of the officers and 
soldiers of our army, and to reward the same, we do hereby command 

1 This in the slang of the present day would be called " having a pnll." 



124 WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITS HISTORY. 

and empower the (rovernors of our said provinces in Nortli America, 
to grant without fee or reward, to such reduced officers as have served 
in North America durino- the late war, and to such private soldiers as 
have been or shall be disbanded in America, and shall personally apply 
for the same, the following quantities of land subject at the expiration 
of ten years to the same quit-rents as other lands are subject to in the 
same condition of cultivation and improvement viz: To every person 
having the rank of a field officer 5,000 acres; to every captain 3,000 
acres; to every subaltern or staff officer 2,000 acres; to every non-com- 
missioned officer 200 acres; to every private man 50 acres." 

The first of these military grants was that known as the " Provincial 
Patent," containing 26,000 acres aud which now forms the present Town 
of Hartford, granted May 2, 1764. Another grant under the same clause 
of his Majesty's proclamation (just quoted) was the one designated 
as the "Artillery Patent" of 24,000 acres. It was granted Oct. 24, 1764 
to Joseph Walton, John Wilson, David Standish and others, and covered 
all of the south-eastern and most valuable part of the present township 
of Fort Ann. "How many of the British troops" says Fitch, who 
made an exhaustive examination of the old records at Albany, " I have 
not been able to ascertain. This much, however, is certain; that the 
Towns of Granville and Hampton, and parts of Hebron were bestowed 
upon some thirty captains and lieutenants." Other parts of Hebron, 
it would appear, as well as the Camden tract in Salem, those in Fort 
Anne, Dresden and Putnam, together with all the tillable lands on both 
sides of Lake Champlain, at least for a considerable distance beyond 
Crown- Point were run out mostly into fifty and two hundred acre lots, 
which were granted to non-commissioned officers and privates. " The 
names of those grantees," further writes the same author, "indicate 
that they were all, without scarcely an exception, Scottish Highland- 
ers — many though not all of them, belonging to His Majesty's seventy- 
seventh Regiment of Foot." 

Strange, however, as it may seein, when, even at that day the 
fertility of the land was well known, of all the commissioned officers 
and regular troops of this regiment, only one became an actual 
settler and well known in the county at an early day. This person 
was the Reverend Harry Monroe, who had been a clergyman of the 
Church of England and a chaplain in the Regiment. Thus, having the 
rank of a subaltern officer, taking advantage of the Royal Proclamation 
he resigned from the army August 23d, 1764, and obtained a grant of 



LAND (tRANTS. 1;>o 

2,000 acres situated in the northern part of the Town of Hebron. In 
1774, aftei a sojourn in New Jersey he persuaded some six families to 
move on to his land, each of them taking a lease of 100 acres for twenty- 
one years at the rent of one shilling a year.' *' These settlers were all 
of them Scottish Highlanders, some of them being discharged soldiers 
who owned land of their own in this same neigborhood. " Rev. Mr. 
Monroe accompanied them to Hebron and built a cabin for himself, in 
no wise superior to those of his neighbors, which consisted of rough 
logs roofed with bark, having but a single room and without anv floor 
except the earth. His cabin stood on the west side of the brook flowing 
out of the marsh on his land. This marsh, which consists of about 
twenty-six acres and is situated in the middle of '' Monroe's tract," gave 
to the vicinity the name of " Monroe's Meadows" which it still retains. 
This marsh, which by drainage he had converted into a farm meadow, 
was a great pet of his; hence, when Monroe assembled his neighbors 
for divine worship on the vSabbath, wath his back to the building (the 
services were held in the open air) and his Bible upon a table before 
him while gazing over his group of hearers, it used to be profanely 
said of him that he "was adoring his meadows more than his (rodl " 

It should be kept in mind that, during the time we are considering 
the entire northern portion of the county, including the disputed terri- 
tory now constituting the vState of Vermont and which was adopted 
into the Federal Union soon after the close of the Revolutionary War, 
was nominally a part of the County of Albany. So much so was it 
thus considered, that in October, 1763, David Wooster (afterwards 
Cieneral, and killed in the skirmish at Danbury April 26, 1777) and 
others petitioned the New York Colonial Assembly for the formation of 
five new counties to be taken otf of that of Albany. 'J\i'o of tliesc zvcre 
to he east of the Green Moitiitains. The third ''was to run from the 
summit of the Green Mountains as far west as the Governor might 
think proper," having for its southern limit the north line of Massa- 
chusetts, the Mohawk River, and a line " connecting the mouth of that 
River with the northwest corner of that State;" while the northern 
boundary was to be "an east and west line crossing the Hudson at l-'ort 
Miller; while the fourth county was to lie directly north of the foregoing, 

» Three ot" the great->jra!ul-sons of one of these settlers, viz; .Stephen. 'I'hos. I,, ami (ieorge 
Bradley Culver, are vet livinij and retain a j^reat and reverent fondness for their aneestor's memory. 
The first two live respectively in Mt. Vernon, N. Y. and New York Citv, and the last is the cashier 
ill the North Granville Bank, North Oranville, Washinsjton County, N. V. 



12G WASHINGTON COUNTY : ITvS HISTORY. 

its northern boundary being- " an east and west line running- through the- 
north end of Lake George." The fifth was to extend to the boundary 
of Canada, although this project was, after mi;ch discussion, rejected 
by the Colonial Assembly of New York — probably because its projectors 
had not sufficient money to "lobby " it through. ' Yet this circiimstance 
is mentioned to show how indefinite the boundaries between New York 
and New Hampshire were at this time. 

During the year 1766, the wordy (and in some instances the more- 
than wordy) conflict between the New Hampshire grantees and the 
New York authorities had already begun- — the former contending that 
the latter refused to confirm the grants except oa the payment of 
exorbitant fees; and from what is known of the conduct of these author- 
ities and the bribes they had exacted from their own people it must be 
confessed that they had, in these charges, some right on their siile. 
Indeed, this controversy between New York and New Hampshire, in 
relation to their boundary line (which of course affected many of the 
farmers on the eastern boundary of Charlotte — now Washington county) 
was now at its height. The great Congress held at Albany, N. Y, in 
1754 (in which Benjamin Franklin was a prominent member) had decided 
that the charters of the Colonies of Connecticut and Massachusetts were 
of a very liberal and uncertain character. The charter granted to the 
Plymouth Company in 1620 — from which was derived that of Connecti- 
cut — covered the expanse from the fortieth to the forty-sixth degree of 
northern latitude, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. 
New York, or more properly the New Netherlands, being tlien a Dutch 
possession, could not, however, be claimed as a portion of these grants, 
as an exception was made of all territory " then actually possessed by 
any other Christian Prince or vState. " The dispute concerning the- 
Wyoming lands was not the only one to which the indefinite phraseology 
of the charter had given rise. Upon the conquest of the New Nether- 
lands by the Duke of York, in 1664, controversies immediately arose 
between that Province and those of Connecticut and Massachiisetts Ray. 
These disputes, however, were subsequently adjusted by negotiations and 
compromise — the commissioners agreeing that the boundary betweert 
New York. Connecticut and Massachusetts, should be a line drawn north 
and south, twenty miles cast of the Hudson river. Hardly had the 

1 I make this statement advisedly; for a history of the manner in which laws having for their 
end, the pecuniary benefit of their projectors, shows that the venal assemblyman of thu fresent 
day could take " points " from the assemblyman of that day! 



NEW HAMPSHIRE CONTROVERSY. 127 

-controversy been to all appearances amicably sattled, when New 
Hampshire, without the least justice or title, insisted upon having the 
same western boundary as her sister colonies. The people of New 
York, who had yielded to the decision of the commissioners with a verv 
bad grace, wei'e in no mood to brook further encroachments upon their 
territory; and they therefore, boldly protested against this assumption 
^of New Hampshire. 

Protests, however, availed little. In 1749, Benning Wentworth, at 
that time Governor of New Hampshire, granted a township six miles 
within the territory claimed by New York and which, in honor of the 
Governor, was named Bennington. This grant was the occasion of a 
lengthy correspondence between Wentworth and Governor George 
Clinton'; and renewed protests on the part of the latter. Protests and 
letters, however, were alike unheeded by the Governor of New Hamp- 
shire, who, intent upon increasing his private fortune," continued in 
defiance of all right to issue patents to all those settlers who wished 
and could afford to pay for them. Such persons, as it may readily be 
•supposed, were not few. A road which had been cut through the 
wilderness from Lake Champlain to Charlestown in New Hampshire by 
General Amherst as a means of communication with Crown Point, 
had revealed the richness of the land. Many, therefore, hastened to 
purchase; and during the year 1761, no less than sixty patents were 
issued, a number which, in 1763, had been increased to one hundred 
and thirty- eight. At length, justly alarmed by the growing audacity 
of Governor Wentworth, and having written to him a letter with no 
effect, Lieutenant-Ciovernor Colden. on the eighteenth of December, 
1763, issued a proclamation, in which the grant of Charles the Second 
to the Duke of York was recited; the jurisdiction of New York as far 
eastward as the Connecticut river, asserted; and the sheriff of Albany 
county enjoined to return the names of all persons who, by virtue of the 
New Hampshire Grants, held possession of lands westward of that river. 
This was answered three months afterward, on the thirteenth of March, 
by a counter proclamation from Governor Wentworth, declaring that 
the grant to the Duke of York was void, and that the grantees should 
be encouraged in the possession of their lands. 

' Tlie Coltiniiil (iovernor — not ou>-Vn.-it\-yrv Clinlon, (iovernor of Xfw York, attor tlu' Kevululion. 

- The reader, who lias imted what I have said rejjardiinj the fees e.Kacted by the Colonial 
Governor and his officials rej^ardinx the grants of land, will reatlily understand the above refer- 
ence to "his private fortune." 



128 WASHINGTON COUNTY ; ITS HISTORY. 

Meanwhile, the New York Assembly, through their agent, Mn. 
Charles, laid the question in dispute before the Board of Trade in 
London, setting forth in their petition, " that it would be greatly to the 
advantage of the people settled on these lands to be annexed to New 
York." The result was that, on the 20th of July, 1774, an order was 
made by the King in council, declaring " the western banks of Connecti- 
cut river, from where it enters the Province of Massachusetts, as far 
north as the foriy-hfth degree of latitude, to be the boundary line 
between the two provinces of New Hampshire and New York." This 
decision of the Crown was received by the latter province in December 
with very great satisfaction. Had the matter been allowed to rest here 
all would have been well. Governor Wentworth, in obedience to the 
Royal authority, ceased issuing patents westward of the Connecticut 
River, and those who had settled upon the grants, were totally indifferent 
as to which Government received their allegiance, provided they covild 
cultivate their farms in quietne.'^s. No sooner, however, was this. 
decision received, than the (jovernor of New York chose to interpret 
the words "to be " as referring to past time, and construed them as a 
virtual admission that the Connecticut River always had been the 
eastern boundary of the Province. He, therefore, delared that the 
grants from Wentworth were invalid, and insisted that the grantees 
either should surrender or repurchase the lands upon which they had 
settled and in many instances improved. Especially did this affect the 
farms then lying East of the Hudson and including what was then a 
part of the present Washington County. To this unjust demand the 
majority of the settlers refused to accede. Notwithstanding which, 
the (lovernor of New York granted their lands anew to others who 
forthwith brought ejectment suits against them and obtained judgments 
in the courts at Albany. All attempts, however, to enforce the judg- 
ments thus obtained, were met by the settlers with a spirited resistance. 
The civil officers sent to eject them were seized by the people and 
severely chastized with "■twigs of the wilderness;" and a proclamation 
from Governor Tryon in the summer of 1764, offering a reward of one 
hundred and fifty pounds for the apprehension of Ethan Allen, the 
principal ott'ender, was met by a counter and burlesque proclamation 
from the latter offering five pounds for the Attorney-General of the 
Colony of New York. 

Thus arose that fierce controversy beteen the hardy Green Mountain. 
Boys of Vermont and the authorities of New York which, lasting with. 



LAND (tRANT controversies. 129 

^reat violence for more than twenty-six years, was finally terminated 
by the long disputed New Hampshire grants being, in 1791, as before 
stated, received into the Federal Union as the State of Vermont. ' 

I have dwelt thus at length upon the causes which led to this important 
controversy — so greatly affecting the titles to the eastern boundary of 
Washington County — that the reader, when the time comes for closing 
up the account of its final settlement by commissioners in 1812, may 
have a full and comprehensive understanding of the merits of the matter. 

Among the numerous incidents to which this controversy gave rise, 
one, out of many of a similar character, will be now related to show 
the curious complications to which it gave rise. 

For example, among those Highland soldiers of the seventy-seventh 
regiment, of whom mention has been made as having settled in the 
county, especially in the Towns of Hebron and Salem, on both sides of 
the line claimed by the New Hampshire people, was a John McDonald 
who had obtained a patent of two hundred acres. To this grant he was 
entitled as Corporal of that regiment. After obtaining his grant he 
returned to Scotland, married, and returned to this country, when, 
greatly to his chagrin and surprise, he found that all but thirty acres 
of land had been, during his absence, cut off into Rupert in accordance 
with the boundary line claimed by the New Hampshire grantees." 

Another anecdote, ending up with a somewhat ludicrous episode 
though not caused by this New Hampshire controversy, was as follows: 
It was related by Robert Blake and Ann McArthur to that indefatigable 
mouser in the early history of Washington coimty. Dr. Fitch — to whom 
too much praise and gratitude cannot be given for the preservation, 
through his efforts, of much which otherwise would have been con- 
signed to oblivion. 

The first building erected in the old Township of Argyle, stood upon 
the flat beside the Batten- Kill, above the mouth of Cassayuna Creek. 
It seems that one Rogers had obtamed from Lydius a strip of land 
along the Batten-Kill from the mouth of White Creek to the Cassayuna 
outlet and had built his cabin, cleared some of the land around it, and 

' Belknap Alleii's 'Narrative. Slaiie^s Vermont State Papers. 

■ Many of the soldiers, says Johnson, not desirin? to settle and not beini< able to dispose of 
their land-;, the latter remained vacant. Consequently, squatters often settled upon them, in some 
cases remHinin'< so lont; in undisputed possession that they or their heirs or assigns became in 
time the lawful owners. 

[16 I 



130 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

was residino- there with his famil}' when the town was surveyed by 
spies from New Hampshire. It would also appear that he remonstrated 
with the surveyors a^-ainst their marking- any trees upon his lands, for 
the eorner of one of the lots near his house was left unmarked. Soon 
after this, when the Scotch settlers bet^-an to arrive in the vicinity, he 
very properly forbade their intruding- upon any part of the lands which 
he claimed, telling- them that if they did so it would be at their peril. 
Disregarding- and unintimidated by his threats two of them, Living-ston 
and Read, erected their houses upon the land claimed by Rog'ers. He 
according;ly, soug-ht every occasion for annoying- them, boldly maintain- 
ing^ that none of the Arg^yle settlers had any title to their lands, Lydius, 
if any one, being- the real owner. Finally, on one occasion, finding- 
that Livingston was absent from home, he went to his house and taking- 
his wife carried her out of doors, sat her down and then proceeded to 
remove all of the furniture from the house — truly a remarkable case 
of ejectment! For this outrag-e a warrant for the arrest of Rog'ers 
was issued by Esquire McNaug-hton and handed to Read, one of the 
constables of the town, for service. Rogers, who was a stalwart and 
athletic man, had given out that it would be as much as one's life was 
worth to molest him, especially as he had some bulldogs about his house 
that would be found dangerous foes for any man who came near his 
dwelling. Fearing, therefore, that it would be a ditificult matter to 
arrest him. Read summoned to his aid one of the most vigorous and 
resolute men in the neighborhood, viz : Joseph McCracken of vSalem, to 
assist him. Not a dog was heard to bark when they approached Rogers' 
laouse in the evening or rather, as it would seem from the narrative, at 
the earliest dawn. As the}" opened the door, Rogers caught up his 
loaded gun, but McCracken, instantly rushing up and grasping it, held 
it iirm in spite of Rogers' utmost efforts to wrest it from him. Read 
now proceeded to bind Rogers' arms behind hiin. A comical incident 
now occurred. Suspenders, says Mrs. Ann McArthur, were not worn 
at that period; and in the struggle the waistband of McCracken's 
pantaloons, becoming unbuttoned, they slipped down, as he was holding 
for his very life on to the musket in Rogers' hands. Meanwhile, a little 
child of Rogers, furious at seeing his father thus overpowered, hereupon 
ran up and bit the posterior of McCracken; but even this attack in his 
rear did not cause him to relax his hold on the gun. The prisoner 
then, being securely bound, was conveyed to the jail in Albany. "Such" 
says Fitch, "is the history of the first service of a legal process in the 



PROMINENT SETTLERS. 131 

coimtv of which we have any knowledge. " What afterwards became of 
Rogers or his family is not known. To prevent further annoyances of 
this kind. Esquire McNaughton had an interview with Lydius and 
requested him either to desist from giving deeds to these lands based 
on his titles opposed to those given by Governor Wentworth, or else to 
get confirmation of his title from the Royal Government. Lydius, it 
is said, visited England for this purpose but without success, the Board 
of Trade refiising to interfere. No further molestation, however, 
from this source was experienced. 

Among the early and most prominent, and indeed distinguished 
settlers of the County was Captain, (afterwards Judge) Duer. It was in 
1766, that the present Village of Fort Miller was founded.' Captain 
Duer, a brilliant officer of the British army had served with distinguished 
merit on the staff of Lord Clive during the latter's remarkable career 
of conquest in India ; and, among other English officers attracted hither, 
had, in his surveys, chosen the vicinity of Fort Miller to found a colony. 
His wife was a daughter of ^Ir. Alexander of New York who claimed 
to be the rightful heir of a Scottish Earldom and who was known 
throughout the Revolutionary War as Lord Sterling. He had, more- 
over, subsequently won high honors at the Battle of Long Island, and 
was held in great esteem by Washington, hiinself. Mrs. Duer was 
generally known as "pretty Lady Kitty" (not Katy as she has been 
called) Duer; and if that designation had at that day been in existence 
she would have been said to have belonged to the "Four Hundred." 
While maintaining a princely establishment in this primeval forest — her 
husband being a person of great wealth — she was accustomed to spend 
a great portion of her time amid the gaieties of the fashionable circles 
of New York City. She was present at the Grand Ball given in 1789, 
in New York City, in honor of the adoption of the Federal Constitu- 
tion and of Washington's Inaugui^ation.'' 

Major Duer was, subsequently, with Gen. Philip Schuyler, appointed 
the second judge of the County — Schuyler being the first; and both 
were associated together on the judicial bench. ■' PhiHp P. Lansing 

' Deriving its name from the old fortified store-houses on the west side of the H\idson, the 
erection of which has already been mentioned. 

'^ In mj' father's (Col. Win. L. Stone's) account of the "Grand Inauguration Hall," taken down 
by him from the lips of Aaron Burr, who was present on that occasion, a full account of the 
costume worn by Lady "Kitty Duer" is j^iven. 

^Schuyler's appointment as "first jud^e of the county" of Charlotte county (Washington) 
was dated the 8th of September, 1772. 



l;j2 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

(after whom Lansing-biirg" was named) was at the same time appointed 
sheriff, and Patrick Smith of Fort Edward, clerk, while Ebenezer 
Clark, a son of Rev. Dr. Thomas Clark, and Alexander McNauij;hton — 
both of New-Perth — and Jacob Marsh and Benjamin Spence of the 
present State of Vermont, received the appointment of "Justices of the 
Quorum." /. e. — associates of the judg-es in holdinjjf the Courts of Com- 
mon Pleas and Sessions. 

Another of the prominent settlers in the county was Major Philip 
Skene — a distinguished officer — who had, at the assault on Ticonderog'a 
in 1758, displayed extraordinary bravery. He had also served with 
gallantry under General Amherst. From these reasons, as well as from 
his prominence and his great influence in early bringing this county 
into notice, he deserves inuch more than a passing mention. 

In the summer of 1759, having, during his march with Amherst 
through the cormtry, noticed the great fertility of the land. Major 
Skene made a settlement at the head of South Bay, where the present 
village of Whitehall ' now stands. Here he located thirty families, all 
being in his employment and began with great zeal the work of clearing 
the land. This place afterward received the name of vSkenesborough, 
after its founder, and was destined, as will hereafter be seen, to come 
into great prominence at the time of the Revolutionary War — especially 
during the campaign of Cieneral Burgo3'ne. Although he had not yet 
secured a title to this land, he, it is said, acted imder the advice of 
General Amherst, having it is to be presumed no doubt that, with such 
a "backer," there would be no question of his obtaining a title to it. 
Having settled his tenants comfortabl}' on their various allotments, and 
still retaining his rank in the army he went to Cuba with the British 
army, and greatly distinguished himself at the attack and capture of 
Morro Castle. In the New York State records he is styled Major Skene, 
yet the grant to him of 3,000 acres of land at Northwest Bay (now 
West Port) in Essex county, for militar}- service, would seem to indi- 
cate that he held at this time a captain's coinmission only. At a later 
period, while serving under General Burgoyne, he is styled "Colonel 
Skene;" but this may have been in consequence of having received a 
civil appointment as one of the judges of this county. He is also 
often designated in the correspondence of the day "(Governor Skene" 
— a title Vt^hich probably originated from the project he at one time con- 
templated, of having the New Hampshire Grants (the present vState 

' For till.- Indian name of Whitehall and its ineaninic, see a few chapters back. 



MAJOR PHILIP SKENE. 1H3 

of Vermont) and northern New York erected into a separate Royal 
Government with himself at its head. If he, however, actually had 
such a commission, it would have been, as has been pointed out, nat- 
urally suppressed by the continental authorities, anxious as they were 
not to offend the important province of New York which would have 
been the effect of recog-nizing svich a document. 

On his return from the West Indies, in 1763, he broug-ht with him a 
number of African slaves; and having obtained, in the spring of 1765, 
a grant of 25,000 acres at the mouth of Wood Creek in the present 
Town of Whitehall, he set himself to erecting a number of buildings of 
a much more pretentious character than any other private citizen 
possessed in those days. His own dwelling was of stone, on William's 
Street in the Village of Whitehall, and his barn, also built of stone, 
stot)d some distance south of his house, it being occupied by the garden 
of the late Judge Wheeler. This edifice was 130 feet long; and its walls 
were so massive that it was always supposed that Colonel Skene, like 
his contemporary. Sir William Johnson in his building at Johnstown, 
N. Y., contemplated the possibility of its being used at some time as a 
fortification — a conjecture which seems not at all unreasonable. 

On July 6th, 1771, he obtained a further grant of 9,000 acres on the 
ground that he could, if duly encouraged by the government, settle 
upon it a hundred families within three years. This last grant which 
was known as "vSkene's Little Patent," adjoined the north side of his 
"Great Patent," and lay on the "East side of the waters running from 
Wood Creek into Lake Champlain. " Nearly 2,000 acres of this smaller 
tract forms the northern portion of the Town of Hampton. The 
remainder of it and all of the "Great Patent" lies in the present Town 
of Whitehall, and includes 2,000 acres granted to Lieutenant Mcintosh, 
besides fragmentary corners of two other military tracts. 

Being now greatly encouraged by the aid given him by the Govern- 
m':int — a circumstance which he undoubtedly owed to his old com- 
.manding officer and personal friend. General Amherst — he pushed 
rapidly forward his improvements; and such was his untiring energy 
and enterprise, and the love which his tenants bore him — they all help- 
ing him in his projects to the utmost in their power — that, in 1767, he 
cut a road at his own ex])ense from his settlement (Skenesborough) 
amid a dense wilderness, thirty miles through the central portion of 
Hebron, or New Perth, and Salem, whence, aided by the inhabitants 
of the southern portion of the cf)unty, it was subsecpiently extended to 



134 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

BennintJ^ton. This, known f(3r many years after the Revolution, as 
"Skene's Road," passed in as straig'ht a course as possible and conse- 
quently went over hilly tracts that are now avoided. It crossed Pawlet 
River at the old turnpike brids^e, a short distance above Whitehall and 
keeping down between the hills in the western part of Granville, came 
to "Monroe's Meadows" by the present west road, and so onwards by 
Chamberlain's ]\Iills to Salem. 

Nothing was done towards g"radin<4- this primitive road, a lart^-e part 
of which was made of log's, and was called in the parlance of the county 
"corduroy." It was, consec[uently, passable in winter only for sleighs; 
and not only in winter was the ox-sled the chief means of conveyance, 
but even in summer (as is the case even at this day, in many portions 
of the Adirondack wilderness) it was a common thing for a settler to 
hitch his oxen to a sled, with wooden runners — iron not being thought 
of — and with a bag of wheat or of corn as a load, make his way to the 
nearest settlement often twelve miles distant. "A man who owned a 
cart at that time was considered to be decidedly forehanded ; and one 
who possessed an actual wagon with four wheels might fairly claim to 
belong to the aristocracy! " ' 

Now, although this narrative will have much to say of Major Skene 
when the campaign of General Burgoyne is considered, yet I deem this 
a g(Jod place to describe his personal appearance, and his general 
character. "We are surprised," says Fitch, "at the malignancy of the 
hatred which most of our old people [this was written in 1849] manifest 
toward this man. From one who in his youth saw him repeatedly in 
Burgoyne 's camp at Fort Edward we are told that he was a large, fine 
looking person, with a pleasant countenance and an affable deportment. 
Except what took place in open and honorable warfare, we cannot learn 
that he was party to any acts by which the inhabitants were ever 
distressed or molested in any way. But there is no doubt that his 
power and influence and the known energy of his character made the 
leading Whigs of the county, from the very outset of the Revolutionary 
struggle, fear him ten fold more than any other friend of the King 
dwelling in this section of the vState. They saw that it was necessary 
that his popularity [and there is no doubt but that it was very great] 
among the inhabitants should be effectually destroyed ; and the abhor- 
rence with which he is commonly spoken of indicates, as much as any 

' Conver.sation.s of Dr. Fitch with Jacob Bitely. Fort Edward; (ieorKe Webster, Lansin^burK. 
and James Rojjers, Hebron. 



NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTEES INDICTED. i;55 

fact within our knowledge, the consummate tact and ability with which 
the affairs of those times were here managed. Could we put the question 
to any of the common people who were residing here in the days that 
are now gone by, who it was that they hated most, the reply we know 
would be * the Devil ; ' but if we further asked who, next to him they 
most execrated, we are in doubt whether the answer would be ' the 
Pope ' or ' old Skene. 

It will thus be seen that most of the early and prominent settlers 
of this county were of foreign birth, viz: Judge (Major) William Duer, 
Major (afterwards Colonel) Skene, Dr. Thomas Clark, and a Dr. John 
Williams — the last being a 3'oung English physician, who had settled 
in Salem in the early part of 1773, and who soon displayed marked 
ability hot only in his chosen profession, but as a inan of business and a 
political leader; for, notwithstanding his recent arrival from England, 
he was an ardent supporter of the patriot cause. So, also, was Judge 
Duer. Dr. Clark and Major Skene were both beliez'ed to favor the 
cause of the mother country, though the former took no active part; 
while a few believed that, at this time, even the hated and much 
maligned Skene would not have become an outspoken and active 
British partisan had it not been for needless harshness on the part of 
the Colonial authorities. 

On the 2 1 St of March, 1773, a stormy court was held at Fort 
Edward. Judge William Duer presided. Judge Philip Schuyler being 
in attendance on the Colonial Assemblv in New York City defending 
the cause of the people. It was expected that many indictments grow- 
ing out of the riots in the eastern part of the County, in consequence 
of the stand taken bv the New Hampshire grantees, as mentioned a 
few pages back, would be found against certain disturbers of the 
peace. In addition to which, the disturbed condition of the country 
(as is the case at the present day on our western borders) caused 
many criminals who had fled here from their haunts in the cities, to 
make themselves obnoxious to the peaceable inhabitants of the county. 
These men hoped, and not. perhaps, without reason, that those who 
had been ousted from their claims and burning for revenge would, if 
not sympathize, at least would "wink " at, or condone their outrages. 
They were, it is said, of the most debased class, comprising robbers, 
thieves, and especially counterfeiters, who had taken advantage of the 
riotous proceedings; and perhaps, too, in addition, the just indigna- 
tion of those settlers who had been driven from their farms, and thus 



136 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

willinw-ly aided in circiilatin*^ their bog'iis silver eoin with alarminj);- 
facility. 

Thus it was, that all these violators of the law and their friends 
crowded in and around the rude tavern at Fort Edward, in one of the 
rooins of which the court was to be held, cursino^ and drinking-, and 
threatening all sorts of dire thing's — not the least of which was their 
determination to " pitch court, officers and jury into the Hudson if they 
dared attempt to enforce the law;" and what added to the excitement 
was the fact that some days before, the court at Westminster, in 
Cumberland county (then in the present state of Vermont) had been 
broken up by a similar mob — one man having been killed and several 
wcmnded in the affray. 

Judge William Duer, however, the East Indian soldier and one 
accustoined from his military experience to brook no insubordination, 
was not frightened. A company of British troops under Captain Mott, 
chanced, at the time, to be passing through Fort Edward on their way 
to Ticonderoga. The Captain, thereupon, having been persuaded by 
Judge Duer to tarry at that village for a few da3^s, the Judge at 
once proceeded to convene and hold his court. The rioters being thus 
c(jnfronted with the glisteniug bayonets of men who would stand no 
nonsense, sullenly subsided, and allowed the court to be held peaceably 
and with no molestation. Consequently, indictments were duly found 
against the guilty parties, thoiigh the intense excitement which arose 
soon after consequent upon the Battle of Lexington, prevented either 
their arrest or conviction. 

Upon the adjournment of his court. Judge Duer reported this 
attempt to intimidate him in the performance of his duty to the Pro- 
vincial Congress and requested their perinission to hold the court the 
ensuing June; writing as follows: 

"Your interposition in this matter may save the shedding of blood 
at the next court, for so long as I know it to be the sense of the 
country that the courts of justice should be supported, and that I have 
the honor of sitting as one of the judges, I shall endeavor to keep them 
open even at the risk of my life." 

"The court thus held by the resolute judge in March, 1775, was 
the last public court in Charlotte county previous to the beginning of 
the Revolutionary period. " ' 

' Johnson. 



PROSPERITY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY. 137 

CHAPTER XII. 

1775— i77C>- 

TiiK Pkack di' I 7(^)3 Bkin(;s Incrkaskd Pkosi'kkii v id Wasiiincion Coi'N'iv — Genekai, 
Thkii't ok 1 iiK Pkoi'I.k Distukhki) liv RiMoKs OF War Bktw kkn ihk Coloniks and 

THK MOTHKK COUNTRV ThE InHAHITANTS OK THE CoUNTY UlVIDEl) IN ThEIK Al.I.E- 

GiANCE — Ethan Allen's Attack on, and Capture ok, Ticonderoga — Seizure and 
Imprisonment ok Coi.onei, Skene — Formation ok War Committees — Faii.lre ok 
General Montgomery's Expedition and His Death hekore the Walls ok Quebec 
— Death krom Small Pox qk General Thomas — Washington's Views Rei;arding 
THE Recruiting kor the Continental Army — Carleton's Nayal Victory on 
Lake Chamim.ain oyer General Arnold — Outlook kok the Fuiukk Most Gloomy 
— Extracts KROM Cai'Iain Norton's *' Ordt.rly Book" — Position ok the People 
oE Washinc;'I()n CouN■T^ at this Crisis Outlined. 

For a number of years, or, since 1760, Washinj^ton County' had 
been favored with a hi^iJ^h degree of prosperity. Many farms were 
either taken up from the Royal Government, or else purchased from 
private parties; while, as has been seen in the last chapter, a number 
of prominent individuals, such as Judj^e Duer and Colonel Skene, had 
become permanent residents. In fact, all the sig'ns g'ave promise of 
an unexampled era of thrift. The French War, moreover, being; now 
over, every one, confident that peace had indeed dawned, looked for- 
ward to a life of contentment and industry, undisturbed by Indian 
forays, accompanied by the inevitable and horrible atrocities of border 
warfare. Canada, having been ceded to Great Britain, no one dreamt 
that soon his farm would be the theatre for the acting- of one of the 
greatest conflicts that had ever taken place in America. Still less, 
did the inhabitants imagine for an instant that their misfortunes in 
even the distant future w^ere to be caused by a war with the Mother 
Country. France, perhaps, they thought inight possibly give rise to 
anxiety; but the idea of trouble arising from that quarter was prepos- 
terous and not to be seriously entertained. It is true, that distant 
mutterings of the fast advancing storm had recently been heard by 
them, but up to nearly the last moment it was supposed that the dif- 

' When I speak of "Washington County." the leader should reeolleet that it was still a 
part of the western portion of Charlotte C<>unt\-. When 1 eonie to write of the sepaiation of the 
eounties this will be made m<rre plain. 

[17 I 



138 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ferences between Enj^land and her American Colonies would be 
amicably adjusted — but, as to a final and a violent separation and the 
cutting asunder of all ties — this was an idea not seriousl}' to be 
thought of at this time, even by the most zealous patriots. When, 
therefore, the news of the Battle of Lexington was conveyed to them 
by a swift messenger, ' followed soon afterward by the news of the 
capture of Ticonderoga by Ethan Allen, they were simply dazed. 
Soon, however, recovering from their stupor, the majority of the 
inhabitants of the county, as with one impulse, sprung to arms, and, 
sympathizing Math their sister colonies, they with one spirit pledged 
themselves to each other " to be ready for the extreme event." With 
one heart, they, with the entire continent exclaimed in the words of 
Patrick Henry: " Give me liberty or give me death! " Acting in this 
spirit they declared in several enthusiastic and public meetings "to 
stand or fall with their brethren of New England," only waiting for 
the commands of the Provincial Congress of New York to take up 
arms. 

It is true, that a large and very respectable ininority, consisting 
chiefly of natives of England and Scotland, were not ready at this 
early period of the contest, to cast aside their allegiance to George 
III ; though, in the presence of the prevailing excitement, they remained 
silent and did nothing by any overt act to make themselves specially 
•obnoxious. That portion of Washington County, then forming a part 
•of Albany County, viz: Cambridge, Easton, Jackson and White Creek, 

' In describing the general alarm sent out after the Battle of Lexington Mr. Bancroft, in one 

■ of his most superb passages, says : 

" Darkness closed upon the country and upon the town, but it was no night for sleep. Heralds 

■ on swift relays of horses transmitted the war-message from hand to hand, till village repeated it 
to village; the sea to the backwoods; the prairies to the highlands; and it was never suffered to 
■drop, till it had been borne north and south, and east and west throughout the land. It spread 
•over the bays that receive the Saco and Penobscot. Its loud reveille broke the rest of the trappers 
•of New Hampshire and, ringing like bugle notes from peak to peak, overleapt the Green Moun- 
tains, swept onward to Montreal and descended the ocean river, till the responses were echoed 
from the cliffs of Quebec. The hills along the Hudson told to one another the tale. As the sum- 
mons hurried to the south, it was one day at New York; in one more at Philadelphia; the ne.xt it 
lighted a watch-fire at Baltimore; thence it waked an an.swer at Annapolis. Crossing the Poto- 
mac near Mount Vernon, it was sent forward without a halt to Williamsburg. It traversed the 
Dismal Swamp to Nansemond, and along the route of the first emigrants to North Carolina. 
' For God's sake, forward it by night and bj' day,' wrote Cornelius Harnett, by the express 
which spad for Brunswick, Patriots of South Carolina caught up its tones at the border, and 
through pines and palmettoes and moss-clad live oaks, still further to the south, till it resounded 
among the New England settlements beyond the Savannah. * * * Ever renewing its 
strength, powerful enough even to create a commonwealth, it breathed its inspiring word to the 
first settlers of Kentucky, so that hunters, who made their halt in the matchless valley of the 
Elkhorn, commemorated the nineteenth day of April, 1775, by naming their encampment Lkx- 
l.N'GTON." 



ETHAN ALLEN CAPTURES TICONDEROGA. 139 

was decidedly more attached to the American cause than the people 
of Charlotte. 

The affair at Lexington and Concord to which allusion has been 
made, had, of course, been the signal for war throughout the Colonies. 
The forts, magazines and arsenals were everywhere seized by the 
Colonists. Troops, as well as money for their support — which was 
equally essential — were raised ; and it was not many weeks before an 
army of thirty thousand men appeared in the environs of Boston under 
the command of General Israel Putnam, " who, as is well known, 
when the news of the Battle of Lexington reached him, left his plow 
standing in the field, mounted his horse and rode awa}' to Cambridge, 
Mass. Putnam will be remembered by the reader as one of the vet- 
erans of both the "Old" and the "French" wars, and one in whom 
the people had the greatest confidence. 

Early in May Colonel Ethan Allen, a hardy and bold leader of the 
settlers upon the New Hamshire grants, (now Vermont) and under 
whose advice the latter had hitherto, so successfully resisted the 
(rovernment of New York, concerted an expedition against Ticon- 
deroga and Crown Point. About forty volunteers from Connecticut 
were of the expedition, which, with the forces collected for this object 
at Castleton, made up the number of two hundred and thirty-one. 
Allen was unexpectedly joined by Colonel (afteirwards General) Bene- 
dict Arnold, who had also, it appears, independently of Allen, planned 
the sarne enterprise. They, however, patriotically throwing- all 
jealousies aside, readily agreed to act in concert, and so admirably 
was the project carried into execution, that the Americans actually 
entered the fortress by the covered way - just at daylight ; formed upon 
the parade-ground within, and awoke the astounded sleeping garrison 
by their huzzas. A slight skirmish ensued and the commander, De 
LaPlace, aroused from his bed and in his night-shirt, surrendered to 
the novel ^ summons of Allen. "I demand a surrender in the name 
of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress." After Ticon- 
deroga had thus been given up to the leader of the hardy Green Moun- 
tain Boys, Colonel Seth Warner was immediately dispatched to Crown 

' The Christian name " Israel" is here given, that the reader may not confound him with his 
cousin. Colonel Rufus Putnam, who built the fortress at West Point and whom, we shall hear of 
later in the Burgoyne campaign. 

' This covered way may still (igoo) be easily discerned, even without a guide. 

^ I say "novel" advisedly, as Allen was even then well known and, indeed, to the time of his 
death, as an avowed atheist and infidel. 



140 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

point, which was easily taken — the garrison consisting only of a dozen 
men and commanded by a sergeant. Meanwhile, Arnold proceeded 
northward to St. Johns, where he succeeded in capturing a sloop of 
war by surprise. On the 13th of May fifty men who had been levied 
in Massachusetts, imder orders given by Arnold as he passed through 
on his way to Ticonderoga, appeared at Skenesborough and took pos- 
session of that village in the name of the revolted colonies. This com- 
pany was commanded by Captain Herrick and, it is said, was the first 
body of American soldiers which entered the present county of Wash- 
ington during the American Revolution. They seized on a schooner 
belonging to Major Skene and bore it off as a trophy to Ticonderoga. 
Taking, also, the absent owner's toryism for granted, they confiscated 
some of his property, among which Avas a very valuable Spanish horse, 
which had been brought by him from the West Indies. It is said, but 
on what authority I do not know, that this horse subsequently passed 
into the possession of Colonel Morgan Lewis, who afterwards loaned 
it to General Arnold to ride at the second battle of Saratoga, w'hen it 
was shot under that daring commander, when he was wounded at the 
capture of the " Brunswick Redoubt" on the 7th of October, 1777. 
This little company of volunteers at the same time that they captured 
Skenesborough, made a prisoner of Skene's son, Andrew F. Skene, 
who, like his father, was also called "Major Skene."' Herrick also 
made prisoners of some fifty tenants and twelve negroes, besides sev- 
eral pieces of cannon. Thus, by a sudden blow and without the loss 
of a man, was the command of Lakes George and Champlain obtained. 

Soon after these startling events Major Skene arrived from England, 
and on his arrival at New York, the authorities, like Captain Herrick, 
taking his toryism for granted, arrested him, seized all his papers and 
threw him into prison. Shortly after he was released and allowed to 
go on his parole at Middletown, Conn. He was not permitted, how- 
ever, to return to hiij home at Skenesborough and his property — his 
tenants, as we have seen having also been captured and taken away — 
rapidly went to destruction. 

The following May, (1776) being highly, and as it was thought at 
the time even by some patriots, justly incensed at his treatment, 

' From this fact has arisen, in several histories, the statement that the original Major Skene 
was taken prisoner at this time; but as then the Major Skene was in England, this, of course, 
was a mistake. A. P. Skene is also sometimes called the nephew of Colonel Philip Skene; but in 
the original records of the sale of their confiscated property the younger man is described as the 
son of the i^ldev.^^/o/insiui. 



WAR COMMITTEES ORGANIZED. 141 

he refused to renew his parole and was ay^ain imprisoned, but was 
finally exchang-ed. Embittered by his losses, and by what he eon- 
sidered his ill treatment, he, as will be seen hereafter, returned to 
Skenesborough in the army of General Burg-oyne. Before, however, 
dismissing Colonel Skene, for the present, it may, I think, truthfully 
be said, that his ease was only one of numerous others at the 
beginning of hostilities when a little policy and leniency on the part 
of the Continental Congress would have converted a man conscien- 
tiously wavering in his opinions as to which side to espouse, into a 
staunch friend of the Colonists in their rebellion ag-ainst the Mother 
Country; whereas, by a contrary course, the Continental Congress, by 
making him a bitter enemy, only threw in their own way obstacles 
which rendered the contest of much greater difficulty than otherwise 
it would have been. 

Althovigh the Colonial Assembh- convened under royal authority 
had adjourned, as we have seen, on the 3d of April, 1775, and never 
inet again, its powers passing by general consent to the Provincial 
Congress, yet in some of the counties of New York State the old 
courts were still held. The last court in Charlotte County, which 
derived its authority from the Royal government, was held on the 20th 
of June, 1775. Its first judge, Philip Schuyler, had twelve days before 
been appointed the third Major-General of the Continental army, and 
was, at this time, giving Washington advice regarding the then con- 
teinplated invasion of Canada. 

At the same time the friends of the American cause were exceed- 
ingly active throughout the county. A county committee was organized 
and delegates elected from the several townships, to whom was en- 
trusted the general direction of affairs in the new and remarkable 
conditions which had so suddenly arisen. These committees, in fact, 
really corresponded to the "Committees of Safety," which had been 
now organized in Tryon County, west of Albany, and throughout the 
entire war they did excellent and efficient service. The Provincial 
Congress, also, ignoring the former disputes between Governor Went- 
worth and vSir Henry Moore, then governor of the Province of New 
York, authorized the formation of a battalion of "Green Mountain 
Boys" — five hundred strong — and the latter, laying aside, for the time 
being at least, all animosity, so far recognized the authority of their 
old time foes as to organize under this act. vSeth Warner, however. 



142 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

instead of Ethan Allen, was chosen by the battalion as the Lieutenant- 
Colonel commanding". 

It must be admitted, however, that the people of the county were 
by no means unanimous in the efforts of the Colonists to throw off 
the British yoke. More particularly was this disaffection to the 
American cause manifested in the towns of Skenesborough, Kingsbury 
and Fort Edward, the feeling in this regard being stronger in these 
places than anywhere else in the county. ' ' Among the most promi- 
nent Tories in the two latter districts," says Johnson, "were the 
members of the Jones family, emigrants from New Jersey, and several 
of whom were influential farmers. In the fall of 1776, two of the 
younger brothers, Jonathan and David Jones, raised a company of 
nearly fifty soldiers in Kingsbury and Fort Edward. To their patriot 
neighbors and the American officials these soldiers declared that they 
were about to join the garrison of Ticonderoga, but among themselves 
they had a very different understanding. All the men that the Joneses 
could trust having been enrolled, they set out for the north, but 
instead of stopping at Ticonderoga they passed through the woods in 
the rear of that fort and joined the British forces under Sir Guy 
Carleton in Canada." Carleton gave Jonathan Jones a captain's com- 
mission and David a lieutenant's. The career of the latter becomes a 
subject of special interest, on account of his subsequent connection 
with the murder of his betrothed, Jane McCrea — one of the saddest 
episodes of the American Revolution — to an account of which a 
special chapter will be devoted in its proper place when I come to 
narrate the Burgoyne campaign. 

Meanwhile, the management of the Northern Department had been 
committed by Washington to Generals Schuyler and Montgomery, in 
both of whom the Commander-in-chief had the utmost confidence, and 
these generals were now (1775) directing a force upon Montreal and 
Quebec. It may, also, be noted in passing — as showing how much 
Washington County figured in this war — that both vSchuyler and Mont- 
gomery tarried a few days at Fort Edward on their way to assume the 
command of the northern army. ' General Schuyler, however, having 
been obliged temporarily to leave the Northern army in consequence 
of ill health, the entire command and responsibility devolved upon 

. ' While Schuyler was at Foft Edward at this time, he used the opportunity to write out a 
proclamation to the inhabitants of Canada (which was at once distributed throughout that 
province! calling on them to throw off the British yoke. 



DEATH OF MONTGOMERY. 143 

General Montg-omery, who had advanced a second time upon St. Johns 
and captured that fortress — Sir Guy Carleton having- been repulsed 
l3y Colonel Warner at Longqueil, in his attempt to cross the St. Law- 
rence and advance to its succor. St. John's surrendered on the 3d of 
November of this year; but while the siege was still pending, Colonel 
Ethan Allen, with thirty-eight of his "Green Mountain Boys," was 
captured and sent to England in irons. ' It cannot be said, however, 
that Allen did not deserve his fate, on account of his rashness and dis- 
obedience of orders. Still, he was very near capturing Montreal with 
the small party he led in advance, as was subsequently admitted by 
one of the British officers. 

The fort at Chamblee fell into the hands of Montgomery, together 
with a large qiiantity of inilitary stores, which were of great use — - 
among them being three tons of powder. Montreal was next taken 
by the Provincials, General Carleton narrowly escaping in a boat with 
mulifled oars to Three Rivers, whence he hastened with all speed to 
Quebec. Montgomery, with his little army, was swift to follow him 
thither, where his arrival had been anticipated by Colonel Arnold, 
with upward of seven hundred New England infantry and riflemen, 
with whomi he had performed the almost incredible feat of traversing 
an unexplored forest, from the Kennebec to the mouth of the Chau- 
diere. Uniting the forces of Arnold with his own, Montgomery laid 
seige to Quebec on the first of December. His artillery, however, 
was of too slight calibre to inake any impression upon its walls; and 
it was finally determined, if possible to carr}^ the town by a combined 
assault from two directions — one division to be led by Montgomery 
and the other by Arnold. This assault was undertaken on the 31st of 
December, and the year closed by the fall of both divisions, the 
wounding of the brave Arnold and the death of the chivalric Mont- 
gomery. - 

The conquest of Canada, however, notwithstanding this unfortu- 
nate termination of the armies of Montgomery and Arnold, continued 
to be a favorite project with Congress, and every possible effort with- 

' Hohiie^s A)i>iah. See also. Parliamentary Rejjister. I give these autliorilies as the fact of 
his beinji ironed has, by some, been doubted. 

- In 1818 the remains of General Montgomery were removed from Canada to New York, by 
order of the New York Legislature and deposited, with military honors, underneath the beautiful 
cenotaph which now (igoo) stands in the front wall of St. Paul's church on Broadway, New York 
City. The curious reader will find a full account of this transaction in my History of New York 
City. 



144 WAvSHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HIST(mY. 

in the means of the Colonists was made to that end. But the fall of 
Montjjfomery had thrown a gloom over the enterprise which was never 
dissipated. Colonel, now General, Arnold had maintained himself 
before Quebec during the winter and until late in the spring, with but 
a handful of men, numbering at at one time, not more than five hun- 
dred fit for duty. But the reinforcements were slow in arriving. 
General Thomas, also, who had been assigned to the command of the 
army in Canada, arrived before Quebec on the ist of May, where he 
found an army of nineteen hundred men, less than one thousand of 
whom were effective, while three hundred of these, being entitled to 
their discharge, refused to perform duty. They had, moreover, but 
one hundred and fifty barrels of powder and six day's provisions. In 
view of this state of affairs and knowing that General Carleton's rein- 
forcements from England would soon arrive, General Thomas, with 
the concurrence of a council of war, determined to raise the siege on 
the fifth of May, and take up a more eligible position farther up the 
river. , It was the intention of the American commander to remove 
the sick to Three Rivers, but on the 6th a British fleet with heavy 
reinforcements arrived. General Carleton immediately made a sortie 
at the head of one thousand men, to oppose whom. General Thomas 
had not more than three hundred available troops. No other course 
remained, therefore, but a precipitate retreat for all who could get 
away, leaving the sick and the military stores to the enemy. Cxeneral 
Thomas, accordingly, led his little Spartan band back to the mouth of 
the Sorel, where he was seized v/ith the small-pox and died. Large 
reinforcements joined the fugitive army at that place, under General 
Sullivan. ' But before General Carleton moved from Quebec, an ex- 
pedition was undertaken from Sorel to the Three Rivers, against 
General Frazer, under the direction of General Thompson and Colonel 
(afterwards General) St. Clair. It was unsuccessful and from this 
time disaster followed disaster, until, owing to the combined causes of 
defeat, sickness, the loss of General Thomas and insubordination, the 
Americans found themselves, on the i8th of June, driven entirely out 
of Canada; the British army following so closelv upon their heels, as 
immediately to occupy the different posts as they were successively 
evacuated. 

The Ainerican forces, however, still retained the control of Lake 

' l-'or siiiiiL- (if this liata I am indfbtfd to my friend, the kite Mr. Thomas C. AiiKiry of Boston, 
a j<real i;rand-son of deneral Sullivan. 



GATES WITHDRAWS TO TICONDEROGA. 145 

Champlain and occupied the fortifications upon its shores, the com- 
mand of which had now been assigned by Congress to General Gates, 
with great and manifest injustice toward General Schuyler. ' Gates 
established his headquarters first at Fort Edward and afterwards at 
Crown Point, but soon afterward withdrew his forces from that post 
and fell back upon Ticonderoga. This step was taken by the advice 
and concurrence of a board of general officers, but contrary to the 
wishes of the field officers. Always a most arrant coward (as will, I 
think, be apparent when we come to the Burgoyne campaign) Gates 
was only too glad to fall in with this decision. Washington, the com- 
mander-in-chief, was, however, exceedingly dissatisfied with this 
movement of Gates, believing that the relinquishment of that post 
would be equivalent to an abandonment of Lakes George and Cham- 
plain and all the advantages to be derived therefrom. " In reply to 
the concern that had been expressed by Washington on this occasion. 
General Gates contended, in his own defense, that Crown Point was 
untenable with the forces then under his command, nor could it be 
successfully defended even with the aid of the expected reinforce- 
ments. These reinforcements, moreover, the General added, could 
not be allowed to approach nearer to Crown Point than Skenes- 
boroiigh, since "it would be only heaping one hospital upon 
another."' In fact, the annals of disastrous war scarcely present a 
more deplorable picture than that exhibited by the Americans escap- 

' The appointment of (iates to the command of this department, was from the first unaccepr 
table to the officers of New York, nor was his own course very conciliatory toward them. In the 
course of this (1776) summer it was reported to Lieutenant-General Gansevoort, a brave and 
deservedly popular officer, belonging to the regiment of Col. Van Schaick and then in command 
of Fort Edward and Fort George, that the general had spoken disrespectfully of that regiment. 
Irritated by such treatment, Gansevoort wrote a spirited letter to Gates, referring to several 
matters in which he had been aggrieved by the letters and conversation of that officer. He 
requested a Court of Inquiry and avowed his determination, with the leave of General Schuyler, 
to relinquish the command of these posts. MS. Letters 0/ Gates ami Colonel GanseToori in the 
ant liar's /ossesslon. 

^ MS. Letter of Washington to (rates — once in the author's possession. 

^ Letter 0/ Gates to Washington in reply. July 28, 1776. The small-po.\ which had been so fatal 
to the troops in Canada, had now broken out at Fort Edward, Crown Point and Ticonderoga— 
the pestilence having been purposely introduced by a villain calling himself Dr. Baker. This fact 
is stated in a MS. letter from the Adjutant General of the Northern Department to Colonsl Ganse- 
voort, dated Ticonderoga, July 24. "The villain," says the letter now before me, "by private 
inocculations in the army, has caused in a great degree, the mi.sery to which we are now reduced 
by that infectious disorder." Baker was arrested and sent to Albany, but his "pull" probably 
saved him from punishment, as we do not learn that he was ever subjected to any summary 
proceedings. The reader may, perhaps, recall that in our own Civil War, attempts were made 
by the Confederates to injure us bv the same methods. 

[ 18 ] 



146 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ing from Canada. In addition to the small-pox, the army had been 
afflicted by other diseases, generated by exposure, destitution and 
laxity of discipline. Fleets of boats came daily up the lake freighted 
with the sick and dying and even those reported from day to day fit 
for duty, presented but the appearance of a haggard skeleton of an 
army. "Everything about this army," wrote General Gates in the 
letter already cited, " is infected with the pestilence — the clothes, the 
blankets, the air and the ground they walk upon. To put this evil 
from us, a general hospital is established at the fort at the head of 
Lake George [there was also a subsidiary one at Fort Edward] where 
there are now between two and three thousand sick and where every 
infected person is immediately sent. But this care and caution have 
not effectually destroyed the disease here ; it is, notwithstanding, con- 
tinually breaking out." 

Such was the deplorable condition in which an army that had passed 
a little before through the county winning admiration from all except 
the Tories, and which had been so recently victorious, found itself 
driven back from what was in fact a conquered country, lost entirely 
through gross mismanagement and the want of an army upon the 
basis of permanent enlistments. 

Indeed, this defect in the manner of enlisting men was, especially 
in the beginning of the war, strikingly illustrated in the dif^culties 
which Washington had to contend with in raising and keeping his 
army together. In fact, the Commander-in-chief was continually ap- 
pealing to the Continental Congress for men that should be raised to 
•serve throughout the war, and he graphically and feelingly represents to 
that body how vain it was to expect him to conduct the war to a stic- 
■cessful issue with men only enlisted for a few weeks, since often, on 
the eve of what might prove to be a decisive battle — the men's term 
•of enlistment having expired — they would quit the army, go home to 
plough and plant their fields. I have now before me, as I write, -a 
MS. Journal (yellow and faded by time) of my great uncle, vStephen 
Stone, a " minute man" in the Revolution, in which his entries bring 
out the above remarks about enlistments in vivid relief and corrobor- 
ate Washington's statements in the fullest degree. Nor, since un- 
doubtedly this Journal is but a sample of the experiences of thousands 
of volunteers at that time, can one peruse it without realizing how 
much justice there was in the complaints of Washington. On the 
other hand, neither can the men themselves be censured for their 



BRITISH CONCILIATION. 147 

course. Their pay was poor, if indeed it were anything. They 
wished, through motives of the highest and purest patriotism, to aid 
the cause of their country, yet they could not allow their families to 
starve. Hence, with no money to pay a hired man in their absence, 
the only alternative was to do the best they could under the circum- 
stances, viz: to divide their time between " solgering" and the sup- 
port of their loved ones at home. ' 

To this matter of the precarious term of enlistments there was 
another difficulty lying beneath the surface. Many prisoners had 
fallen into the hands of the enemy at Quebec and, during the subse- 
quent retreat all of these, had been treated (Allen excepted) with the 
greatest care and humanity, but so much of the subtle poison of flat- 
tery, mingled with kindness had been poured into their ears, that 
their return on parole, which was soon after allowed by the British 
commander, was regarded with apprehension. On one occasion a 
large number of prisoners arriving at Crown Point from St. John's, in 
a vessel provided by Carleton, were visited before landing by Colonel 

' A few passage.s from this journal of vStephen Stone may be of interest to the reader as illus- 
tratinji the statements in the te.\t, inasmuch as it brings one down from an abstraet view to a very- 
realistic and concrete one. 

Extracts kkom ihk Joi rnai,. 

••June 22, 1778. I enlisted. 

26th. I went to Guilford [Connecticut] to guard some prisoners. 
Guarded them to New Haven and returned to Guilford. 
Came home and carted William [his brother] a load of wood. 
Lieutenant Atkins joined us with twenty men. 
We marched to Fairfield. 
We marched to Stamford and joined Colonel Mosely, and were sent 

on to Greenville. 
Came home and worked in the garden. 
We marched to Saw-Pitts and encamped on a hill about two miles 

from Bryant's Bridge. 
I enlisted to guard at the Salt House on the Xeck Highlands. 
Stood upon guard for Jonathan Everts. * 
Hired a man to plough. 
I ploughed the garden. 
Began to plant. 
Went upon guard. 
Began to plough. 
Began lioeing. " 
And thus the Journal continues in the same strain. 

* An ancestor, I believe, of the E.K-Secretary of State William M. Kvarts. 





27th. 




28th. 




30th. 


Jub 


; I St. 




3d. 




4th. 




7th. 


Feb. 


25th. 




29th. 


Apri 


1 9th. 




2ISt. 




20th. 


AjMi 


1 1 2th. 




14th. 


.Mav 


2ISt 



148 WAvSHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

John Trumbull, the Adjutant-General for the Northern Department. 
.From the feeling they manifested, and the tenor of their conversation 
Colonel Trumbull saw at once that it would not be prudent to allow 
them to land, or hold the least intercourse with the suffering troops of 
the garrison. (To such an extent had the human treatment — so en- 
tirely unexpected by them — affected them ! ) Trumbull immediately 
reported this fact to Gates and advised him that the said prisoners 
should be sent directly forward to Skenesborough and thence des- 
patched to their respective homes, without allowing them to mingle 
with the troops at that place. This suggestion was adopted. In view 
<of this episode, one cannot but believe that if, in the beginning of the 
Revolution, all of the British generals had adopted the same concilia- 
tory tactics of Carleton, there might have been sufficient Tories in the 
revolted Colonies, to have turned the scale — already hovering in the 
balance — in favor of the mother country. Nor is this inference wholly 
•conjecture, as the writing of several contemporaneous historians 
.abundantly prove. ' 

Nor were the difficulties thus enumerated all which the officers had 
to encounter. The spirit of disaffection in this county, as well as in 
• other counties of New York, was far more extensive than those w^ho 
.are left to contemplate the scenes through which their grandfathers 
passed and the discouragements against which they were compelled to 
struggle, have been wont to suppose. The burden of many of General 
Schuyler's letters written from Fort Edward and Skenesborough, and 
.also the letters of other officers under his cominand, during the whole 
<of this season, was the frequency of desertions to the ranks of the 
(enemy. 

' Notably those of Judge Jones of New York City. See, also, on this point Sabins Loyalists 

General Sir Guy Carlton was not only at that time, but subsequently, the ablest British 
general in America, but the most humane. Three hundred prisoners left in Quebec by Major 
Meigs the middle of May, when afterwards exchanged, were furnished by Carleton with articles 
of clothing in which they were deficient. It is also said, that when some of his oificers spoke to 
him of this act as an unusual degree of lenity toward prisoners of war, he replied, "Since we 
have tried in vain to make them acknowledge us as brothers, let us at least send them away dis- 
posed to regard us as first cousins." Having, moreover, been informed that many persons, 
suffering from wounds and various disorders, were concealed in the woods and obscure places, 
fearing that if they appeared openly they would be seized as prisoners and severely treated, he 
issued a proclamation commmanding the militia officers to search for such persons, bring them 
*to the general hospital, and procure for them all necessary relief at the public charge. He also 
invited all such persons to come forward voluntarily and receive the assistance they needed — 
assuring them "that as soon as their health should be restored, they should have free liberty to 
return to their respective provinces." — Spar/cs. 



ACTIVITY OF GENERAL CARLETON. 149 

But, while General Carleton was most chivalric in the treatment of 
his prisoners, he did not suifer his plans for the defeat of the Ameri- 
cans to lag. In addition to the succession of disasters to the Ameri- 
can arms, he appeared in the fall of this year (1776) upon Lake Cham- 
plain with a flotilla, superior to that of the Americans under Arnold, 
and which seems to have been called into existence as if by enchant- 
ment. Two naval engagements followed, on the nth and 13th of 
October, contested with undaunted bravery on both sides, ' but re- 
sulting in the defeat of Arnold, the annihilation of his little navy and 
the possession of the Lake and Crown Point by the foe. To add, 
moreover, to the gloom which had already begim to fall upon the 
patriots, the forces of the Commander-in-chief of the Continental 
army, at this time, numbered only from two to three thousand men, 
and scarcely a new recruit had coine forward to supply the places of 
those whose terms of service were expiring. And even those recruits 
that were furnished were so badly supplied with officers, as almost to 
extinguish the hope of forming an army from w^hich-any efficient ser- 
vices w^ere to be expected. " 

These are but a few of the discouragements iinder which Washing- 
ton was laboring. To borrow his own expressive language in the pri- 
vate letter to Tiis brother in the preceding note, " You can form no 
idea of the perplexity of my sitviation. No man, I believe, ever had a 
greater choice of difficulties and less means to extricate himself from 
them." Nevertheless, the last sun of that year did not sink behind so 
deep a cloud of gloom as had been anticipated. In the north General 
Carleton, who had occupied Crown Point after the defeat of Arnold's 
fleet, did not (as might have been supposed, he would not fail to do) 
pursue his victory, but returned to Canada without attempting any- 

' "The engagement began on the nth," wrote General Gates to Colonel Ten Eyck from 
Ticonderoga on the 13th of October, "and continues to this day. The enemy's fleet is much 
superior to ours and we maintain a running fight. All our officers and men behave with the 
greatest spirit." — MS. letter in the author' s possession. 

2 "The different states without regard to the qualification of an officer, quarreling about the 
appointments and nomination of such as are not fit to be shoe-blacks, form the local attachments 
'if this or that member of the Assembly." — Letter from Washington to his brother, iqth November, 
1776 — Sparks. 

It will thus be seen — from the experiences of the late Spanish War— that the selection of 
officers was made on about the same lines in that day as in this. Indeed, as Seneca wrote nearly 
two thousand years ago. Quae fuerant vitia mores sunt — " What once were vices are now the man- 
ners of the day ! " 



150 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

thing further,' and before the close of the year the Commander-in-chief 
had the satisfaction to announce to Congress that instead of imitating 
the bad example of others, the Continental regiments from the Eastern 
States had agreed to remain six weeks beyond the time of their en- 
listment. In addition to which were the crossing of the Delaware and 
the bold return of Washington upon Trenton and his brilliant victory 
over the Hessian forces at that place, under Colonel Rail, on the 
morning of the 26th of December. This well-judged and successful 
enterprise greatly revived the depressed spirits of the Colonists and 
produced an immediate and happy effect in recruiting the American 
army. 

It should not be supposed, however, that nothing had been done for 
the protection of the northern frontier of Washington county during 
the summer of 1776. On the contrary, under General Schuyler's 
supervision and by his express direction, Skenesborough and Fort 
Anne had been heavily garrisoned and every precaution taken to pre- 
vent the advance of the foe, so that, perhaps. General Carleton did 
well to hesitate after his naval victory over Arnold, before advancing 
further than Crown Point. As illustrative of this, it may be men- 
tioned, that, within the last year, the " Orderly Book" of Captain 
Ichabod Norton of Colonel IVIott's Connecticut regiment has been un- 
earthed, published and edited by that accomplished writer and delver 
in Revolutionary history, Mr. Robert O. Bascom of Fort Edward, N. 
Y., from which work, as substantiating the above statement I cull a 
few extracts : - 

" Skeensborough, Augt. the 20th, A. D. 1776. 
Regimental orders, that the Revd. Soloman Morgin is Chaplin of the Regt. and 
to be obeyed as such. Charles Mical is appointed agitant of the Regt. and obayed 

^ " I expected by thi.s time to have given you an account of .some important battle fought at 
Ticonderoga. But General Carleton has disappainted us. He began his Retreat from Crown 
Point on Saturday, and drew in all his advanced Posts. looo men marched to attack those at 
Putnam's Creek, but the Enemy had gone the evening before. We learn that they evacuated 
Crown Point yesterday. . . . Their number is uncertain, but computed at 8000 or qooo, besides 
.Savages. . . . Tne sick of our four Battalions turned out to the Lines, and seemed happy at 
seeing the Enemy. In .short, Officers and Men seemed in the greatest Spirits. The Enemy were 
convinced they had to attack formidable works and men firmly determined to defend them. I 
hope tieneral Carlton and the rest of his Army are convinced that our Misfortunes in Canada, 
and Retreat, was not owing to a want of Courage in the Americans. ... I hope the Year will 
be crowned with Success to the American Arms. We have had a most fatiguing Campaign, but 
shall be happy if this Army can maintain the Keys of this Country, etc."— Thomas Hartley (Cf)l. 
in the Revolutionary War and a member of the Continental Congress) to Col. Wilson, dated 
"Ticonderoga, Nov. 5th, 1776." 

- The spelling, etc., is strictlv followed. 



CAPTAIN NORTON'S ORDERLY BOOK. 151 

as such. Asa Tracy is apjiointed quartermaster and to be obayed as such. Doct. 
apeiton Woolcutt Rosseter is surgeon and Physition to the Regt. and to be obayed 
as such. Jonathan Damans is armorer to the Regt. and to be employed and oba^^ed 
as such. * * The Regt. is to attend in the front of the Regt. Every morning and 
Evinin the fnjnt of Col. Swift's Regt. till further orders. Eight men to attend on 
Peleg Heart this day, who is to see that sutible holds be made this day in sutible 
Places in the Rear of the Regt. after they are Erected no man is to be found doing 
liis occasion in any other place than them aloted, on Penaltjr of being confined for 
breach of orders. ' * * * The officers of duty in Each Company are to take it by 
turn day by day and see that the men's cooking is well takin care of s(j far as can 
be for so small a number of cittles as can be contained; the Revilee to beat in front 
of the Regt. 

Skenesborough, Aug. 21, a. d. 1776. 

* * T'was observed Last Evenin, while prayers were attending, that noise 
and Singing was made by people who remained in camp, which attended to disturb 
Public worship. Tis ordered for futer that no noise or singing shall be made in 
Camp nither Shall the Sutler offer to sell anything during the time of Divine Ser- 
vice, unless in case of pure necessity, judged so by the officers of the Regt. The 
officers and men of the Regt. are well noing, for the present necessity has obliged 
the Col. to ask leave of the general to be absent for a week or two. Col. Mott as- 
sures the Regt. that having the highest Hopes and Expectation from the good con- 
duct and harmony of the Regt. and Vigilence and alartness in the Servace, nothing 
less than the alarming. Broken and distressing situation of his family and affairs 
could Have tended him to left business. But as soon as he has paid a little atten- 
tion to his Molandy affairs att home to return without Delay. In the mean time 
hoped and expected that the commanding officers in the Col's, absents will intake 
all possible care of the Regt. to keep them in good order and Disipline and see 
justice done them on every ocation. The officers and men will pay all due obe- 
dience to him as their commanding officer. Tis expected that the officers will take 
litigence care to cultivate in the men a spirit of good Agreement and Indevour to 
teach and form them to that fortitude, Resilution and obedience which is the only 
means of divine protection and victory in case of an attack from the enemy. Serj. 
Young, of Capt. Roboson Comp., attend the office of regimental Clark. ^ If the 
whole of the Regt. should arrive in the Col. Absents, Lieut. Col. Worthington will 
order the Regt. a monthly return to be made out Specifying Each Comp. fit for 
duty on command, where at, sick, dead, deserted, absent on furlough and so forth, 
having made out, properly sined by himself and transmitted to the poast by him- 
self to Governer Trumbull. 

Skenesborough, Aug. 26, A, 1). 1776. 

Field officer of the day tomorrow Lieut. Col. Cortland ; the guard as usual. The 
party for fatigue duty the same as this day. Itts ordered that fuer men be set apart 
to attend the buchass [butchers ?] to bury the guts and nastiness with Blood of the 

' The sanitary arrangments of the camp seem to have been well looked after. 

^ Our friend, Colonel Mott, had some excuse for this spelling, as in England, just as Derby is 
pronounced Darby, Clerk is pronounced Clark. 



152 WAvSHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

cattle that is cild [killed !] and likewise ordered that Buchards take care that no 
nastiness is hov in the crick [Wood Creek]. If they Heeve any in they must suffer 
the consequence. Likewise I would have the buchards take care and order better 
for the futer, or else I shall take care of them. For guard Ensin James Hecox and 
5 privates and ten for guard. 

Skenesborough, Aug. 30, A. D., 1776. 
* * It is ordered that each ordayly serj. of each comp. mak a morning report 
of the sick to the doctors of each Regt. with names the Doctors, who is to inspect 
into the circumstances of Such Sick Soldiers and the doctors is to report to the 
capt. how many he finds sick in his Comp. and the Doctors who is to make a return 
to the company for such hospital stores as the solgiers stand in need of. The com- 
manding officers of each Regt, who is to sign the order that shall be given on the 
comp, and its ordered that sick solgiers that draw hospital stores is not to draw 
their Rasions [rations] out of the stores, only such as the Doctors should think they 
stand in need of. It [is | Likewise ordered that the company will provide all ingre- 
diences for the use of the sick, and that to be delt in proper order. 11 men for 
guard. 

Camp att fortann, Sept. the 17, A. D. 1776. 
The orders for tomorrow is that A Corp. guard be mounted as usial and 2 men go 
to help down with sheep to Skeensborough and 2 men to work at the sawmill and 2 
men to keep sheep here, and i corp, and 6 privates to turn out as the working party 
I Corp. and 3 privates for guard and 2 for fatigue. 

Camp att Fortann, Sept. the 21st, A. D. 1776. 
The orders for tom<;rrer are that a corp. guard be mounted as usial and i 
corp. and 9 privates turn out on the working party at S o'clock, and the orderly 
serjs. see that them men Parade Exactly by the time, for the futer all firing is 
strictly forbid, and any person who shall tire his gun in the camp without leave 
from Capt. or his Commanding officer, may expect to suffer for it as breach of 
orders. 

WoKiiiv Wartkks, 

Major. 

Camp att Fortann, Sept. ye 22, A. D. 1776. 
The orders for tomorrow is that a corps, guard be mounted as usial and 3 men 
to go on fatigue and all who are A mind to draw molasses may draw tomorrow one 
week alowance for man. [for each man]. 

WoRl'UV W.VKTKKS, 

Major. 
For guard, 3 men: t for fatigue. 

Camp att fortann, Sept. ye 2Sth, A. D. 1776. 
The orders for tomorrow are that a corp. guard be mounted as usial and four 
men turn out on the fatigue party. 

For guard, 3 men ; for fatigue, 2 men. 

WoKTin- WAR-n-.KS, 

Major. '" 



MILITARY ORGANIZATION REQUIRED. 153 

Enoug-h, however, of these extracts from this invahiable Orderly 
Book has been given to show the reader how alert, nay, how anxious, 
the garrisons at Skenesborotigh and Fort Anne, under their respective 
officers, were to ward off the enemy from the northern frontier of 
Washington County, and, although we may smile at the bad grammar 
and loose spelling of Captain Norton and Major Warters, yet these 
comparatively venial errors are more than counterbalanced by the 
evidence here shown in their awkward sentences, of their unflinching, 
unswerving patriotism, and their conscientious and high ideals of duty. 

During the remainder of the year little of moment seems to have 
occurred within the boundaries of Washington County. The complete 
defeat of our forces in Canada, to which detailed reference has been 
made, and those experienced by Washington around New York at the 
Battle of Harleem and his subsequent retreat through New Jersey had 
filled, as before mentioned, the hearts of the patriots both of this and 
other counties in New York with sad forebodings; and although the 
late victory at Trenton had seemed to show that the heavy clouds, 
which had darkened the future, were beginning to break away and 
give entrance to the bright rays of success, yet it had become evident 
to all that the task of freeing the county could not be accomplished by 
the fitful enthusiasm and taking up arms by the " Minute Men." It 
was apparent that if permanent victory was finally to perch upon our 
banners, a definite and systematic organization of those capable of 
bearing arms must be effected — that soldiering must be begun in 
earnest and with an unfaltering determination to submit for an in- 
definite time to danger, hardship and irksome discipline. But the 
poverty of the Government was extreme, the Continental money had 
so greatly depreciated that sometimes as much as $200 was paid for a 
single breakfast, and therefore, there appeared to be but little en- 
couragement for the "hardy farmers of Washington (Charlotte) 
County to enlist in the ranks of the ill-paid, ill-fed battalions" which 
now garrisoned Fort Edward, Fort Anne, Ticonderoga, Crown Point 
and other forts on its frontier. 



[19] 



154 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

1777- 
THE CAMPAIGN OF GENERAL BURGOYNE. 

The Settlers of Washington County Begin to Realize the Serious State of 
Affairs — Reports of the Invasion of the British Army Fully Confirmed — 
Advance of Burgoyne and the Capture of Fort Ticonderoga and Retreat of 
St. Clair — Fermoy's Treachery — Battle of Hubbardtown — Burgoyne Pursues 
the Americans Through Wood Creek ' and Destroys Their Flotilla — Battle 
■of Fort Ann — Anecdotes Connected with that Engagement. 

The opening of the year 1777, brought to the settlers of Washington 
County a distinct and realizing convietion that the war was soon to be 
brought home, not only to her northern boundaries, but to their own 
very hearths and fire-sides. Rumors, also, were in circulation that 
their farms, which through much labor and toil they had now brought 
up to a high state of cultivation, might soon — if, indeed, it were not 
a certainty — be the prey of the British army, accompanied by the 
marauding savages, thus rendering nugatory all the results of their 
thrift and industry. Neither were these various rumors, as they were 
destined soon after to find to their cost, mere chimeras of the imagin- 
ation. Early in the spring of this year a well substantiated report 
spread through the country that an immense British army, together 
with a large contingent of German mercenaries had already arrived 
at Quebec and was soon to come up Lake Champlain under the far- 
famed General Burgoyne, and thence to Albany, whence, in all prob- 
ability they would penetrate even to the gates of New York City. A 
large bod}^ of Indians, moreover, it was added, was in the train of the 
invading army, whose barbarous atrocities during the French war 
upon a defenceless, though then a sparsely settled, population along 
the northern frontier were but too vividly recalled. The settlers, 
therefore, with good reason shuddered at the direful prospect of these 
bloody scenes being again repeated in their midst. Still they hoped 
much from the army of General Schuyler and, especially, from the 
fortifications of Fort Ticonderoga which, twenty years before (as it 

' By Wood Creek is here meant the entire creek beginning at Ticonderoga up to Whitehall 
and thence through the county— Lake Champlain really terminating at that fort. 



THE CAMPAIGN OF GENERAL BURGOYNE. 155 

will be recalled by the reader who has attentively followed this his- 
tory) when defended by only three thousand French, had repelled, 
with immense slaughter, the flower of the British army, consisting of 
more than twenty thousand disciplined troops under General Aber- 
cromby — all of them regulars and who had served under the famous 
^larlborough. Nor, as I have said, were these reports, as is so often 
the case, without foundation. In fact, they were only too true. Dis- 
satisfied with the slow progress that had been made in the subjugation 
of her rebellious American Colonies, the Mother Country, through 
her ministry, summoned General John Burgoyne into their councils — 
to which conference, Burgoyne, chafing under his subordinate posi- 
tion under General Carleton — was only too glad to be admitted. 

At this council, held in December, 1776, Burgoyne concerted with 
the British Ministry a plan for the campaign of 1777. A large force 
under himself was to proceed to Albany by way of Lakes Champlain 
and George, while another large body, under Sir Henry Clinton, ad- 
vanced up the Hudson in order to cut off communication between the 
northern and southern colonies, in the expectation that each section 
being left to itself would be subdued without difficulty. At the same 
time Colonel Barry St. Leger was to make a diversion on the Mo- 
hawk river. 

For the accomplishment of the first part of this plan, a powerful 
force was organized in Canada, the command of which was transferred 
from Sir Guy Carleton — the ablest British general, by the way, at 
that time or subsequently in America— ' and conferred upon General 
Burgoyne — an army, which, for thoroughness of discipline and com- 
pleteness of appointment had never been excelled in America. - The 
generals, also, who were to second him in the expedition were trust- 

' See a preceding note. 

- Hurgoyne arrived in Quebec on the 6th of May, 1777, and received the command of the forces 
from Carleton on the loth. General Riedesel, however, with his Brunswick contingent, had been 
in Canada for fully a year — during which time, he, with the practical strategy and acuteness of 
observation which always distinguished him, had employed that time in drilling his troops to 
meet the customs of the Americans. "Thus," he says in one of his letters to be found in my life 
of him, " I perceived that the American riflemen always shot further than our forces, conse- 
quently, I made my men practice at long range and behind trees that they might at least be 
enough for them." Speaking, also, of the removal of Carleton at this juncture, Riedesel further 
says: "A great mistake was undoubtedly made by the British ministry. Carleton had, hitherto, 
worked with energy and success. He knew the army thoroughly and enjoyed the confidence of 
the officers and men. It was a great risk to remove a man who was so peculiarly fitted for so 
important a position without a better cause." It was also said at the time that one cause of the 
displacement of Carleton was his strong objection to the employment of Indians in the proposed 
expedition. 



156 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

worthy and able officers. Major-General Phillips was not only dis- 
tinguished as an artillery officer, but had given proof of exceptional 
strategical skill ; Major-General Riedesel had been specially selected 
for his military experience, acqviired during a long service, and par- 
ticularly during the " Seven Years War," where he had enjoyed the 
entire confidence of Prince Ferdinand. The English Brigadiers, 
Fraser and Hamilton, and the German ones, Specht and Gall and 
Lieutenant-Colonel Breymann, had been appointed to their respective 
commands solely on the ground of their professional merits. The 
former had attained a high reputation for judgment and cool daring 
and was considered one of the most promising officers in the army. 
Colonel Kingston, the adjutant-general, had served with distinction 
in Burgojme's horse in Portugal; and Majors Lord Balcarras and 
Acland, commanding respectively the light infantry and grenadiers, 
were each, in his own way, considered officers of high professional 
attainments and brilliant courage. 

All things being in readiness, in the early summer of 1777 Bur- 
goyne left Cumberland Head, off the present town of Plattsburg, 
sailed up Lake Champlain and, on the 17th of June, encamped on the 
western shore of that lake at the falls of the little river Bouquet, now 
Willsborough. At this place he was joined by about four hundred 
Indians under the Chevalier St. Luc and Charles De Langlade, ' 
whom, in a council and war-feast, called and given especially for the 
purpose, he addressed in a speech designedl}' couched in their own 
figurative language and intended to excite their ardor in the ap- 
proaching campaign and "to inculcate those humane principles of 
civilized warfare which to them must have been incomprehensible." 
On the 30th of June the main army made a still further advance and 
occupied Crown Point (Fort St. Frederick ') without meeting with the 

' Burgoyne. in a letter to Lord George Germanic, d&teA Skenesbor0ug;h, July the nth, 1777, 
says: " I am informed that the Ottawas and other Indian tribes, who are two days' march from 
us, are brave and faithful, and that they practice war and not pillage. They are under the 
orders of M. St. Luc, a Canadian of merit and one of the best partizans of the French cause dur- 
ing the last war, and of a M. de Langlade, the very man who, with these tribes projected and 
executed [the ambush which caused] Braddock's defeat." For more of this regarding Langlade, 
the reader is referred to my " Burgoyne's Expedition," Albany, 1877. 

^ The glories of Fort St. Frederick had long since passed away, and after Carleton captured 
it on the 14th of October, 1776, the Americans seemed to consider that its maintenance was of no 
importance; in fact, that it depended entirely on the naval mastery of the Lake. Possession of it 
they could not keep, for if the brave and undaunted Arnold was not able to make up for inferior 
force by fiery valor and unsurpassed ability, how pray, could men of meaner capacities? In the 
engagement off Valcour Island, the 13th of October, 1776, Arnold fought so well and desperately 



i 



THE ADVANCE OF GENERAL BURGOYNE. 157 

slig-htest resistance ; while General Eraser, following- partly the shore 
of Bulwagga Bay, pushed ahead on the land as far as Putnam's Creek, 
three iniles north of Ticonderoga. In the evening the following orders 
were given from the coinmanding g-eneral : ' ' The army embarks to- 
morrow to approach the enemy. The services required on this expe- 
dition are critical and conspicuous. During our progress occasions 
may occur in which no difficulty, nor labor, nor life are to be regarded. 
This army must not retreat." Then, having issued a grandiloquent 
proclamation designed to terrify the inhabitants of Washington County 
into submission, Burgovne prepared to invest Ticonderoga. Leaving 
a detachment of one staff -officer and two hundred men at Crown 
Point for the defence of the magazines, the royal army started again 
at five o'clock on the morning of July ist in two divisions. The corps 
of General Phillips was on the west and that of General Riedesel on 
the east shore of the lake — the Dragoons forming the van of the whole 
army. The fleet advanced as far as Putnam's Creek almost Vvathin 
cannon-shot of the Ainericans. The right wing of the army en- 
camped on the spot recently occupied by the brigade of Eraser (that 
officer having again gone ahead) and the left wing under Riedesel 
occupied the eastern shore opposite the right wing. The corps of 
General Breymann advanced on the same shore as far as the left wing 
of the fleet, from the flagship of which, the Royal George, the Ainer- 
ican position could easily be seen. 

The garrison of Ticonderoga ' was estimated at from four to five 

that it is not to be wondered at that contemporaries named him the " hero" and the "thunderbolt 
of war." Indeed, in those qualities which illustrate Hancock in our late Civil War and made 
Washburn style him " the living impersonation of war" Arnold was resplendent. He was a mar- 
vellous soldier and was very badly treated by Congress. " Strange to say," remarks General J. 
Watts de Peyster, in one of his historical essays, " the scene of the British naval victories in 1776, 
was not far distant fonly six miles) from the place of their defeat in 1814." 

Crown Point was called Kruyn or Kroon punt (or Scalp point) by the Dutch, and by the French 
Point a la Cheveleuse. The size and extent of these works, which, (1900) are still standing, render 
their exploration by the touri.st very satisfactory and instructive. The promontory which juts 
out from the further shore directly opposite Crown Point and on which General Riedesel was 
encamped for a day or two, is called Chimney Point. When Fort Frederick was built in 1731, a 
French settlement of considerable size was begun at this place. During the old French war, 
however, it was destroyed by a party of Mohawk Indians, (which left Fort Edward for this pur- 
pose) who burned the wood-work of the houses, leaving the stone chimneys standing. For many 
years afterward these stood, like solitary and grim sentinels, watching over the ruins. Heiice 
the name of Chimney Point. 

' Ticonderoga, the various French and Indian names of which have been given in a preced- 
ing note, is situated fifteen miles south of Crown Point and thirty north of Whitehall. It is 
formed by a sharp angle in the narrow waters of the lake, and an arm of that lake stretching to 
the westward which receives the waters of Lake George at the foot of a precipitous fall of some 
twenty feet. 



158 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

thousand men and consisted of twelve regiments divided into foiir 
brigades commanded by General St. Clair. Its position was covered 
on the right flank by Fort Independence, a star-fort built on a consid- 
erable eminence on the east shore of Lake Champlain and fortified 
by three successive lines of fortifications. It was separated by water 
from Ticonderoga, which lay on the opposite side, and consisted chiefly 
of the old French works. In the lake, between the two forts, lay four 
armed vessels, and both were connected by a bridge not yet thor- 
oughly completed. In front of this bridge there was a strong iron 
chain hanging across the water, which was intended to break the first 
assault of the British. To the left of Ticonderog-a there was another 
fortification upon a hill covering the enemy's left toward the saw-mills 
on the portage between Lake Champlain and Lake George. Ticon- 
deroga was garrisoned by one-half of the American force, or two bri- 
gades; the third brigade was at Fort Independence and the fourth was 
distributed in the entrenchments outside of the fort. This was the 
position of the Americans when General Burgoyne arrived before 
Ticonderoga. 

Meanwhile, the people of Washington Count}", though confidently 
relying on the army garrisoning Ticonderoga to form a wall against 
which the forces of the invading army would dash in vain, were not 
idle, being actiiated by a stern desire to do their part in the general 
defense. The "Charlotte (Washington) County Rangers," at this 
time under the command of Captain Joshua Conkey and Lieutenants 
Isaac Moss and Gideon Squiers, were patrolling the northern roads 
and forests, watching for British scouts or lurking Indians, and the 
efforts made to get out the militia met with great success. On the 
2d of July, General St. Clair wrote to Colonel Williams saying he 
"was happy to hear that the people turn out so well. The ene- 
my," said the general, " have been looking at us for a day or two, and 
we expect them to try what they can do perhaps to-night. " He then 
urged Colonel Williams and Colonel Seth Warner, the leader of the 
Green Mountain Boys, if " they can bring but six hundred men, or 
even less, to do so." He directed them to march through the grants, 
on the east side of Lake Champlain, " first on the old road," and then 
" on the new road, to make the enemy think there is a larger force.'' 
If attacked, the militia were to make directly for Mount Independence 
and St. Clair promised to send a force to support them. That general, 
inclosing, remarked in a very flattering and politic manner: " If I 



INEFFECTUAL OPPOvSITION TO BURGOYNE. 159 

had only your people here, I would laugh at all the enemy could do." 
Letters, also, to the same purport, were sent to Colonels Robinson 
and Warner. ' The Charlotte (Washington) County regiment accord- 
ing!)^ set forth under Colonel Williams immediately upon the recep- 
tion of this letter. " We know, from records still extant," writes 
Johnson, *" that there were at least five or six companies, and doubt- 
less they all turned out on this expedition ; but the only ones of which 
there are any account are the one from New Perth (Salem) consisting 
of fifty-two men under Captain Charles Hutchison — the Highland 
corporal whom Ethan Allen had inobbed in 1771; that of Captain 
Thomas Armstrong, numbering thirty men, and that of Captain John 
Hamilton, numbering thirtj^-two men. The battalion marched under 
Colonel Williams' command to Skenesborough, and thence to Castle- 
ton, w^hence a portion of them were selected by the Colonel to pro- 
ceed to Ticonderoga. " This point they never reached. 

At noon of the 2nd of July — the very day that St. Clair had sent 
his letter just quoted to Colonel Williams — Eraser moved forward and 
taking possession of some high ground which commanded the Ameri- 
can line and cut off their communications with Lake George, named 
it Mount Hope in anticipation of victory. On the approach of Eraser 
to occupy Mount Hope, the Americans, most unaccountably, imme- 
diately abandoned all their works in the direction of Lake George, 
setting fire to the block houses and saw-mills, and without sally or 
other interruption, permitted the enemy under Major-General Phillips 
to take possession of this very advantageous post w^hich, besides com- 
manding their lines in a dangerous degree, totally cut off, as has been 
said, all their communications. The only excuse for such an early 
abandonment of such an important point, was found (as was devel- 
oped afterwards at St. Clair's court martial) in the fact that the 
general in command had not force enough to man all the defences. " 

At the same time that Eraser made his successful attack on Mount 
Hope ' Phillips moved more to the right and occupied the saw-mills. 

' Johnson. 

^ In the beginning of thi.s skirmish of Fraser, Lord Balcarras fof whom we shall hear further) 
who commanded the light infantry, had his coat and trousers pierced with thirty balls, while, at 
the same time Lieutenant Haggit received a mortal wound in both eyes by a ball and Lieutenant 
Douglass of the 29th while being carried from the field wounded was shot through the head by a 
sharpshooter. 

" The ridge on the highest part of which Mount Hope is situated, extends westwardly about 
half a mile to the savs'-mills or the perpendicular fall at the outlet of Lake George. On the south 



160 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Riedesel, likewise, advanced with Breymann's corps and took up a 
position in front of Fort Independence behind Stream Petie Marie — 
now called East Creek. Meanwhile, unfortunately for the Americans, 
their engineers had overlooked, or rather neglected, the high peak or 
mountain called Sugar-loaf hill (Mount Defiance), situated south on 
the point of land at the confluence of the waters of Lakes George and 
Champlain. Originally it had been supposed and taken for granted, 
that the crest of Sugar-loaf hill was not only inaccessible, but too dis- 
tant to be of any avail in covering the main fortress. This opinion 
was, however, a great error, for it was really the key to the situation, 
whichever army might occupy it. In fact, as early as July, 1758, 
Captain vStark had brought the fact of its commanding attitude to the 
notice of Lord Howe, ' who, on that occasion, had been taken by Stark 
to its summit — some 800 feet in height — overlooking the works of 
Ticonderoga. Howe even perceived at that timic the advantage which 
a few pieces of cannon, placed there in battery, would afford a besieg- 
ing army over the garrison ; but General Abercromby, supposing his 
force of sufficient strength, brought, as we have seen, no artillery 
with his army. Colonel John Trumbull, also, the preceding year, 
1776, had called the attention of the officers of the garrison to it. 
Colonel Trumbull was then Adjutant-General for the Northern De- 
partment but when he made the suggestion he was laughed at by the 
mess. He, however, soon proved the accuracy of his own vision by 
throwing a cannon-shot to the summit and, subsequently, by clam- 
bering lip to the top, accompanied by Colonels Stevens, Wayne and 
Arnold, dragging a cannon after them. " General Schuyler, also, 
had seen the necessity of occupying it and had frequently rec^uested 
reinforcements for that purpose. ^ In whatever light it is viewed, it 
was a criminal neglect on the part of St. Clair, the commander-in-chief 
of the fortress, that the oversight was not at once corrected by the 
construction of a work upon the summit of Mount Defiance which 

it presents a b<.>kl declinity washed by the strait, and on the north it declines until it sinks into a 
plain which is extended about one hundred rods to the shore of the lake where the bank is ten or 
twelve feet high. It was precisely at this point th-at Abercromby suffered such a disastrous 
repulse. 

■ Memoir of Caleb .Stark, p:<c- 24- 

- Conversations of the author's father with Colonel John Trumbull, and also his unpublished 
ineinoirs, to which the author had access. 

^ This being an undoubted fact, the detractors of Schuyler, who throw on him the errors of the 
evacuation, have nothing on which to base their slanderous assaults. 



BRITISH THREATEN TICONDEROGA. IGI 

would have commanded the whole post. It was a neglect, Irowever, 
that was soon to cost them dear. While the maneuvers of Eraser and 
Phillips, above described, were executing, Lieutenant Twiss, one of 
the most experienced engineers of the British army, made a thorough 
personal exainination of vSugar-loaf hill and reported that the "hill" 
[it is really quite a mountain] " completely commanded the works and 
buildings both at Ticonderoga and Fort Independence ; that it was 
distant about 1400 yards from the former, and 1500 from the latter; 
that the ground might be levelled so as to receive cannon, and that a 
road to convey them, though extremely difficult, might be built in 
twenty-four hours." Accordingly, as soon as darkness had set in, a 
winding road was cut to its summit, a battery commenced and cannon 
to serve it transported thither. ' In fact, so expeditiously was the 
work carried forward under Phillips, " that the garrison of Ticonderoga, 
on awakening the next morning, found to their amazement and dismay 
that from the" crags, seven hundred feet above, the British were 
coolly looking clown upon them, watching their every niovement and 
only waiting for the completion of their batteries to open fare. 

As soon as General St. Clair perceived that the British had gotten 
up guns upon Sugar-loaf hill, and that it was ablaze with the crimson 
and gold of their uniforms, he knew that all the efforts of the Colonies 
to provide for the defense of this place had been rendered useless and 
that all the enormous amoiints expended upon it had been mere waste 
of money. He ought, it is true, to have comprehended this at the 
outset, but prominent military men, as well as engineers — as we have 
seen — are often blind on such subjects. In commenting upon this 
error of St. Clair, General de Peyster justly says: ''Halleck, esteemed 
a scientific soldier a:id life-long engineer, in our Civil war tnade even 
a worse mistake in regard to Harper's Ferry; and the Sardinian gov- 
ernment, after squeezing a million of dollars out of their savings to 
fortif}^ Ventimiglia. only awoke to the fact that it was commanded by 
two elevations, when an American officer, in 1851, demonstrated to 

- The holes drilled into the rocks on the summit of Mount Defiance for the carriai^es of the 
cannon may still be seen by the curious tourist who takes the trouble to climb to its top — at least 
they were to be seen some ten years since, when the author visited the spot. 

■-'■'General Phillips has as expeditiously conveved cannon to the summit of this hill (Mount 
Detiancel, as he brought it up in that memoraljle battle at Minden, where, it is said, such was 
his anxiousness in e.\peditinii the artillery, that he s]ilil no less than fifteen canes in beatin.vf the 
horses.'" — A uburev^s Letters. 

I 20 1 



1G2 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

them the enormous range whicJi had been recently attained by Bom- 
ford's Columbiads — the heaviest then, of American artillerj'. " 

In this critical situation, St. Clair at once called a council of war, 
which immediately decided on an immediate evacuation. He after- 
wards justified himself by claiming "Although I have lost a fort I 
have saved a province," or " I have eventually saved a state." In- 
deed, the only man, except Colonel Trumbull, as I have noted, who 
from the first saw and said that "Old" Ticonderoga was untenable 
was Schuyler. But, in his case as in a thousand of others, ignorant 
public opinion overruled experienced private judgment. This obsti- 
nate stupidity cost the infant nation over a million of dollars, implace- 
able material, more than a thousand men when most needed, and for 
nearlv two months demoralized the frontier population of Washington 
County. 

At this council of war, held by St. Clair and his officers, it was also 
determined that the baggage of the army, together with such artillery, 
stores and provisions as the necessity of the occasion would admit, 
should be embarked with a strong detachment on board of two hun- 
dred batteaux and despatched under the convoy of five armed galleys 
up the lake to Skenesborough (Whitehall) and that the inain body of 
the army should proceed by land, taking its route on the road to 
Castleton in what is now Verinont, which was about thirty miles south- 
east of Ticonderoga, and join the boats and galleys at Skenesborough. 
Absolute secrecy was also enjoined. Accordingly, early in the even- 
ing, Colonel Long, with five armed galleys and six hundred men, set 
out with the sick and wounded for Skenesborough, and a few hours 
later, about two o'clock in the morning of July 6th, St. Clair with the 
main body of the troops passed over the floating bridge in safety and in 
all probabilit}" would have effected his retreat wholly undiscovered, 
had not the headquarters of General Roche de Fermoy, who com- 
manded Fort Independence, either through accident or treachery been 
set on fire. We are, however, inclined to the latter opinion. The 
Chevalier Mathias Alexis Roche de Fermoy was one of those foreign- 
ers who cost the Colonies so much before the}- learned to estimate 
sufficiently, how the high estimate put upon these strangers by them- 
selves and the stupid masses w^as all sham. He is credited in his^tory 
with ordering his dwelling to be fired, and the lurid light of the flames 
revealed to Fraser (and of course to Burgo3me) what the Americans 
were doinu". It mav not have been absolute intention like the treason 



EVxVCUATION OF TICONDEROGA. IfiS 

of Dennnit which U)st us Fort Washini^ton, but the effects were even 
more prejudicial to our arms. No one without absolute proof has a 
rig-ht to claim treachery, but weig'hiui'f the facts and results, the critic 
is certainly justified in saying- that the consequences were equivalent 
to it. It lost to the Colonies what, at that time, was equal to an army 
at a crisis and occasioned the bloody eng-ag-ement at Hubbard town, 
which cost the Americans the life of Colonel Francis, one of their 
best officers, and hundreds of their very best troops — not to speak of 
incalculable consequent demoralization. " It is a somewhat singular 
fact," says that able military critic, (icneral J. Watts de Peyster, " that, 
generally, wherever the Americans were unsuccessful a foreigner was 
mixed up in it." A little thought on the part of the reader (see, for 
example, at the Battle of Monmoutli) will confirm the trutli of this 
observation. ' But whether Fermoy's act was the result of treason or 
not, this unfortunate occurrence, besides informing the British of the 
retreat, threw the Americans into great disorder. At earlv davlight 
Riedesel embarked his men and took possession of Fort Indepen- 
dence, at the same time that Fraser occupied Ticonderoga. Eighty 
large cannon, fi\-c thousand tons of fl<Uir, a great quantity of meat 
and provisions, fifteen stand of arms, a large amount of ammunition 
and two hundred oxen, besides baggage and tents, were found in the 
deserted forts. 

There would seem to have been no necessit}' for this stampede. 
The camps of the Americans were not surrounded — on the contrarv, 
the road to Vermont was still open — and the batteries of the assail- 
ants were not yet in position. Indeed, it is very questionable, if the 
garrison had fallen back in time and fought the British in a well 
selected position, as bra\-ely as Francis and Warner did a few davs 
later at Hubbardtown, that the Americans would not have made it a 
second Bunker Hill — that is, a barren victory, achieved at such a cost 
of British life as must have brought the Burgoyne capitulation much 
nearer to Lake Champlain, l)oth as to scene and to date. " There are 

' Roche de Fermoy (or Fermoil was a colunel df the ■•''rench arni\- and rccci\i.-d tlic ai)i)uiiit- 
ment of Brijjadier-(ieneral from Congress. " One of the worst of the aventurers was tliis very 
General Fermoy, who brought disastei- upon the rear of St. Clair's army after the successful 
retreat from Ticonderoga." Smith's St. Clair 1.63. dates dismissed Fermoy with a letter to 
Hancock, September 4th, 1777, containing this shrewd diplomatic praise: " I have much respect 
for long service and rank of General Ferinoi and wish circumstances had made it convenient to 
have retained him here."— Gates M.S. Papers, in New York Historical Society. Upon his return 
to France— after in vain attempting to be placed again in active service— he returned, it is be- 
lieved, to France and thence to the West Indies where he clisappears from view. 



1G4 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

a o-reat many successes in war," says General de Peyster, " which like 
the fall of Fort Sumter and the issue of the first Battle of Bull Run 
in our late civil war, are more fatal in the end to the winners than to 
the losers. Ticonderoo^a was one of these." However this may be, 
" g-reat fright and consternation" says General Riedesel in his "Mili- 
tary Journal," ''must have prevailed in the enemy's camp, otherwise 
they would have taken time to destroy the stores and save some- 
thing." And yet St. Clair's retreat was b}- no means so disorderly as 
some historians have represented it. Lamb (w^hom I shall have 
occasion again to quote) and who was evidently a conscientious and 
shrewd observer, speaking of this event in his Journal, says: "After 
the enemy retreated we marched down to the works and were obliged 
to halt at the bridge of communication which had been broken down. 
In passing the bridge and possessing ourselves of the works, we 
foimd four men lying intoxicated with drinking, who had been left to 
fire the guns of a large battery on our approach. Had the men 
obeyed the commands they received, we must have suffered great 
injury, but they were allured by the opportunity of a cask of Madeira 
to forget their instructions and drown their cares in wine. It appeared 
evident they were left for the purpose alluded to, as matches were 
found lighted; the ground was strewed with powder, and the heads 
of some powder-casks were knocked off in order, no doubt, to injure 
the men on their gaining the works. An Indian had like to have done 
some mischief from his curiosity — holding a match near one of the 
g-uns, it exploded, but, bing elevated, it discharged without harm." 

The news of the fall of Ticonderoga w^as received in England w4th 
every demonstration of joy. The King rushed into the Queen's 
apartment, crying, " I have beat them; I have beat all the Ameri- 
cans!" and Lord George Germaine announced the event in Parliament 
as if it had been decisive of the campaign and of the Colonies. 

The unresisted occupation of a fortress so highly esteemed as 
Ticonderoga, and upon which the Americans had so confidently 
counted as capable of resisting Burgoyne, the apparently ignominious 
flight of its garrison and the even more insignificant impediments and 
resistance of the American preparations and flotilla, elated the British 
general in the highest degree. They lifted him up as much as they 
depressed the Colonists. Yet, this over-weening confidence with 
which it inspired the English commander was, in the end, as we 
shall see, the cause of innumerable misforttmes. It was much more 



CONSTERNATION AT FALL OF TICONDEROGA. 1G5 

difficult to abase the hig-h thoug-hts of the British than to elevate the 
temporary depression of the Americans. " Common dang-er and com- 
mon sense,"' it has been said, "are strong-er allies than the influence 
of a bloodless triumph." And so it proved in this instance. Schuyler 
was the embodiment of common sense, and if he needed any encour- 
agement he found it in the jvidgment of Washington. " Time and 
will against any other two" has long passed into a proverb. In the 
game that ensued Schuyler wrung Time from Burgoyne and he him- 
self furnished the Will. Making the most Time and exerting W^ill in 
the highest degree, Schuyler, on the one hand so obstructed Bur- 
goyne, that on the other hand, he was able to gather together suffi- 
cient forces to crush him. 

But how was this defeat received by the Colonies at large ? John 
Adams, when he heard of St. Clair's abandonment of Ticonderoga, ' 
said, "We shall never be able to defend a post until we shoot a gen- 
eral." This seemed a very patriotic speech, and, as such, was duly 
applauded. He had much better have said, "His people w^ould never 
succeed until they hung the majority of the politicians, who inter- 
fered with such men as Washington and Schuyler and fostered the 
vile cabals against them," (the same as it was in our last war against 
vSpain). St. Clair's remark, quoted on a preceding page, was inuch 
more just — that " he had lost a fort and saved a province." Never- 
theless, they w^ere both wrong. " St. Clair was a poor commander and 
both the Adamses were politicians of greatly circumscribed ideas. 
Not one of the Adams family ever had enlarged views. Several 
speeches of these Bostonians abundantly prove this, especially, their 
remarks from time to time in regard to Washington. Still, as time 
passes, every day more and more clearly reveals the fact, that he was 
a consummate leader of men, although not destitute of the proclivities 
and failings of energetic humanity — faults or blemishes without 
which mortality cannot have force." 

But, if the news of the fall of Ticonderoga, on which so man}- hopes 
had been based, caused general consternation throughout the Colon- 
ies, especially did it fall with crushing weight upon New York State 
and more particularly on the County of Charlotte (Washington). 
" The people felt as they did in that Massachusetts valley, a few years 

' St. Clair was afterwards tried by court martial for this retreat from Ticonderoga but was 
honorably acquitted. The ridiculous charge also made at the time, that Burgoyne had shr)t 
silver bullets into St. Clair's camp by way of a bribe may be dismissed as too absurd for consid- 
eration. 



IGG WASHIXGTOX COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

as^x), when thev heard that the dam had broken awa}- and the waters 
were rolling- down upon their defeneeless homes. Many, espeeially 
in the northern part of the settlements, made immediate preparaticms 
for flig-ht with their families from the dreaded British, the more 
dreaded Hessians and the Indians, the most terrible of all. ()thers 
hastened to ioin the army, now more than ever in need of men : while 
still others (and not a few) of Tory proelivities, furbished up their 
arms and eonsulted together how they might best serve the cause of 
the King." ' 

Bi;t to resume the thread of my narrative of the events following 
the capture by the British of Tieonderoga. In the retreat from that 
fort Colonel Francis succeeded in bringing off the rear guard in a 
regular manner. When the troops arrived at Hubbardtown in \'er- 
mont they were halted for nearly two hours, and the rear guard was 
increased by many who did not at first belong to it, but were ])icked 
up on the road, having been iniable to keep up with their regiments. 
The army under St. Clair then proceeded to Castleton, six miles fur- 
ther- — Colonel Warner with the rear guard and the stragglers, remain- 
ing at Hubbardtown. 

No sooner had the Frenchman, (Brigadier-General de Fernioy's) 
quarters burst into flames than the vigilant Fraser discovered b\" 
their glare and the partial moonlight that the Americans were evacu- 
ating Tieonderoga and making off. With an alacrity unusual in Eng- 
lish officers he instantly began an eager pursuit with his brigade, 
^Major-General Riedesel being ordered to follow with his Brunswick- 
ers. But it does not enter into the province of this work to describe 
in detail the battle which took place at Hubbardtown. It is suihcient 
to say, that on the 7th of July, Fraser came up with Colonel Warner 
who had about one thousand men. A severe battle was thereupon 
fought resulting in the death of the brave Colonel Francis, who fell 
at the head of his regiment while fighting with great gallantry, and 
in the complete defeat of the Americans. This victory, however, had 
not been easily won. General Fraser acknowledged that he would 
have been in great danger of defeat had it not been for (General Ried- 
esel's timely aid, since, if reinforcements had not arrived at the very 
moment they did, his whole corps would have been surrounded and 
cut off tt) a man. 

The loss in this action was severe on both sides. Colonel Hale, 

' lohnson. 



THE ADVAN'CE OF GENERAL BURGOYXE. l(J7 

who, on account of illness, had not brouj^-ht his rej^-iment into action, 
fell in with a small party of British in a dense forest, and with a num- 
ber of his men — all raw militia — was captured. Colonel Hale (the 
grandfather of the late Hon. Robert S. Hale, M. C, of Elizabeth- 
town, Essex County, N. Y.) was charg-ed at the time, by personal 
enemies, not only with cowardice, but also with treasonable commun- 
ications with Burj^oyne while a prisoner. The matter was thoroughly 
investigated and both charges were found to be without a shadow of 
foundation. Indeed, I have now before me, as I write, a certificate 
in Burgoyne's own hand-writing (who, although he may not have 
been a great general, yet certainly was a man of honor, save when 
women were concerned) in which he certifies "on his honor as a 
gentleman and a soldier," that Colonel Hale has never communicated 
to him any improper information, and further, that no conversation, 
even, has passed between them, " except the ordinary dinner table 
courtesies between gentlemen." Poor Hale died a prisoner at the 
early age of thirty-seven and never had the opportunity, which he 
most earnestly sought, to vindicate himself by a court-martial. In 
killed, wounded and prisoners, the Americans lost in this action three 
hundred and twenty-four men, and the British, one hundred and 
eighty-three — among whom was Major Grant, of the Grenadiers, a 
most excellent and brave officer. 

Meantime, while these events were taking place upon the land, 
General Burgoyne was pursuing the Americans upon the water. In 
a few hours he destroyed the boom and bridge which had been con- 
structed in front of Ticonderoga and which had been the work of 
months and of great labor to complete, and by a few well directed 
cannon shots he broke in two the colossal chain upon which so many 
hopes had hung. The passage thus being cleared, the fleet of Bur- 
goyne immediately entered Wood Creek, and, favored by a brisk 
wind, came up with the American flotilla at vSkenesborough in the 
afternoon. Meanwhile, three regiments, which had landed at South 
Bay, crossed a mountain with great celerity, with the object of turn- 
ing the Americans above Wood Creek, and destroying their works at 
Skenesborough, thus cutting off their works at Fort Anne. The 
Americans, however, eluded this stroke by the rapidity of their flight, 
but, in the meanwhile, the British frigates having now come up, the 
galleys, already hard pushed by the gun-boats, were completely over- 
powered. Two of them surrendered and three were blown up. The 



1G8 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Americans now despaired, and having" set lire to their works, mills and 
bateaux and otherwise destroyed what they were unable to burn, the 
detachment under Colonel Lon^^, hastily retreated by way of Wood 
Creek to Fort Anne. 

Meanwhile, General St. Clair, who had arrived with the van-guard 
at Castleton, in Vermont, tipon learning- of the discomfiture at Hub- 
bardtown and the disaster at Skenesborough, and consequently, ap- 
prehensive that he would be interrupted if he proceeded toward Fort 
Anne, struck into the woods uncertain whether he should repair to 
New England or Fort Edward. Being joined, however, two days 
afterward at Manchester by the remains of the corps of Colonel War- 
ner and by the militia, which, it will be remembered, had been sent 
to him from Washing-ton County under Colonel Williams, he proceeded 
to Fort Edward and united with the force of General Schuyler. 

BATTLE OF FORT ANNE. 

As soon as Burgoyne had taken possession of Skenesborough, he 
detached Lieutenant-Colonel Hill, with the 9th regiment, to Fort 
Anne, with the view both of interrupting such of the enemy as should 
attempt to retreat to that fort and of increasing the panic produced by 
the fall of Ticonderog-a. It was also of vital importance to the Bi-itish 
that Fort Anne should be taken, as it commanded Wood Creek 
through which their army would have to move carrying with them as 
many batteaux as would be necessary to transport their provisions 
d(nvn the Hudson to Albany — the objective point of Burgoyne's expe- 
dition. This detachment had not proceeded many miles before it 
overtook some boats laden with baggage, women, children and 
invalids belonging to the Americans, moving up Wood Creek in order 
to escape to Fort Anne. These were at once secured. Arriving 
within a quarter of a mile of the fort Colonel Hill learned, through an 
American deserter (in reality an American spy) that it was very 
strongly garrisoned, and although he had with him five hundred and 
forty-three veterans, he at once halted in a strong position and send- 
ing back a message to Burgoyne for reinforcements, lay that night 
upon his arms. 

Before, however, gix'ing an account of the Battle of Fort Anne — an 
engagement the most im])ortant that has ever taken place within the 
limits of Washington Count\\ and which, as was acknowledged bv 



DEFENCE OF FORT ANNE. 169 

officers on both sides, was one of the most hotly contested actions of 
the Revolutionary War — it may be well, in order that the reader of 
the present day may have a clear idea of the scene of this battle, to 
g'ive a brief description of the ground on which it was fought. On 
leaving the main street of Fort Anne village, there is a bridge over 
Wood Creek, leading to its left bank. Immediately beyond the bridge 
there is a narrow pass only wide enough for a carriage, cut in a great 
measure out of a rocky ledge, which terminates here exactly at the 
creek. This ledge is the southern end of a high rocky hill, which 
converges toward Wood Creek and between the two is a narrow tract 
of level ground, which terminates at the pass already mentioned. On 
this ground the battle took place, and the wood on tlie right bank of 
the creek, from which the Americans fired upon the left flank of the 
British, is still there and it was up this rocky hill that they retreated 
and took their stand. ' 

Meanwhile, Colonels Long and Van Rensselaer, who by the direc- 
tion of Schuyler, with five hundred men — many of thein convales- 
cents — had taken post at Fort Anne, were not persons to await an 
attack. Colonel Long had been known for many years as an officer 
of distinguished bravery and of undoubted patriotism, while in regard 
to Colonel Van Rensselaer, when Ticonderoga was abandoned by the 
Americans, General Schuyler requested General Washington to send 
Colonel Henry Van Rensselaer to the Northern Army. The First 
New York regiment with a park of brass artillery, was then at Fort 
George — to save which was all important -to the American cause. 
Colonel Van Rensselaer was directed to pick out of the militia, then 
at Fort George, (many of whom, aside from those enlisted in Colonel 
William's regiment, were from Washington County) four hundred 
volunteers and stop the British advance at a defile near Fort Anne at 
all hazards, until he could remove the stores, etc., from Fort George." 
These officers, learning from the spy before mentioned, who had re- 
turned, determined to force an engagement before Burgoyne should 

' Aubury in his "Travels" jjives an exquisite oicture (and, undoubtedly, a faithful one) 
drawn by him on the spot, of Fort Anne and its block-house. I would advise those of my Fort 
Anne readers, who would like to see how their town appeared in 1777. when they happen to be in 
Albany to visit the State Library and look at this picture, as the library has this work. It will 
well repay them to do so. 

■■^ How far he succeeded in e.xecutinjr this order and the jfood effect it had in rallyinij a new 
army, will be found in Burgoyne^s Trials, yi'ilkinso>is Memoirs, Boit»ey\ Historical Gleanings and in 
other works. 

[21 1 



170 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

l)c able to assist Colonel Hill. According-ly, early the following- 
morning- (July 8th) they suddenly issued from the fort and attaeked the 
English in front checking" their advance by a galling fire, while at the 
«ame time a strong column under Van Rensselaer crossed the creek, 
and taking advantage of a thick wood passed nearly around the left 
tlank of the British, and, after delivering them a most tremendous fire 
across the creek, "poured down upon them," in the language of a 
participant in this action, "like a mighty torrent." Indeed, so severe 
was this onslaught that Deputy-Quartermaster General Money testi- 
fied before the CcMiimittce appointed to try Burgoyne in Parliament, 
that the "American fire at the engagement at Fort Ann was heavier 
than any other action during the campa^'gn, except in the battle of 
Freeman's Farm on the rgth of September, 1777." This terrific attack 
of Colonel Van Rensselaer compelled Colonel Hill, in t)rder to avoid 
being- completely surrounded, to take post on the top of a slight emi- 
nence. No sooner, however, had he taken up this position than the 
Americans reformed and attacked it so vigorously in an engagement 
which lasted more than two hours, that the English Colonel must soon 
have surrendered, had not the ammunition of the Americans unfortu- 
nately given out; and since, on their side, bayonets were the exception 
and not the rule among them, they could not fight regular troops with 
only clubbed muskets. To add, moreover, to the giving out of the 
ammunition their misfortune was increased at this critical juncture, 
most opportunely for the British, by the arrival of a party of Indians 
under Col. Money who, with the shrill war-whoop, dashed in and forced 
the Americans, in their turn, to give way and join their comrades further 
up the creek. Colonel Long thereupon, not being able to withstand 
the force of Major-General Phillips — some authorities say (General 
Powell — who. with the 20th regiment, consisting of five hundred and 
twent\- men and two pieces of artillery, was pressing forward to the 
assistance of Hill, sent off all his baggage and wounded, and having 
set fire to the frail block-house and palisade which constituted Fort 
Anne, with the remnants of his Spartan band, fell back with his com- 
mand upon Fort Edward, joining his forces at that place with those of 
(General Schuyler. 

It has, I am fully aware, been stated that the credit of impcding 
Burgoyne's ascent of Wood Creek up from vSkenesborough should be 
given to Colonel Long in his retreat, who " wisely used his powder in 
bhistin*" rocks from the bluffs above Fort Anne in the narrow gorge 



COLONEL LONG'S OPERATIONS. 171 

throuo^h which the creek flows and effectually destroyed its naviga- 
tion." But what proofs can be produced for this claim on behalf of 
Colonel Long-? 

The British broke through the boom barrier or bridge at Ticon- 
deroga before 9 a. m. on the 6th of July and reached Skenesborough 
only two hours later than the Americans — early in the afternoon of 
the same day. "Colonel Long," writes General J. Watts de Peyster 
— than whom on this episode of the Revolution no abler critic exists — 
"landed his battalion at about 3 p. m., ' the 6th of July and marched 
directly to Fort Anne, eleven or twelve miles further south. He must 
have consumed the whole daylight getting over that distance through 
the woods and swamps. Early next day, 7th July, Long retraced his 
steps three miles, had a hard fight with the British Colonel Hill, and 
that afternoon, having returned to Fort Anne and burned it, retired 
to Fort Edward, on the Hudson. That is to say, this Colonel Long, 
who is represented as using his powder in blasting rocks on the 6th, 
still had powder enough to fight next day a smart little battle which 
lasted a number of hours. How did the soldiers tmder Long obtain 
or carry with them any super-abundant powder on this exhausting- 
march, and where did he get tools to drill and appliances for blasting? 
He did march eleven or twelve miles, we know, from Skenesborough 
(Whitehall) to Fort Anne, after 3 p. m., on the 6th July, conseqiiently 

^ The lAmericanJ boats reached Skenesboroug-h about three o'clock on the afternoon of the 
same day |6th July], when the fugitives landed to enjoy, as they fancied, a temporary repose; 
but in less than two hours they were startled by the reports of the cannon of the British gun- 
boats, which were firing at the galleys which were lying at the wharf. By uncommon effort and 
industry, Burgoyne had broken through the chain, boom and bridge at Ticonderoga, and had 
followed in pursuit with the ' Royal George ' and ' Inflexible ' and a detachment of the gunboats 
under Captain Carter. The pursuit had been pressed with such vigor that, at the very inoment 
tvhen the A tnericans were lauding at Skeiieshorouffh^ three British regiments liiseinbar/ceii at the head of 
South Bay, with the intention of occupying the road to Fort Edward. Had Burgoyne delayed the 
attack upon the galleys until these regiments had reached the Fort Edward road, the whole 
party at Skenesborough would have been taken prisoners. Alarmed, however, by the approach 
of the gunboats, the latter blew up three of the galleys, set fire to the fort, mill and storehouse, and 
retired in great confusion toward Fort A nn. Occasionally the overburdened party would falter on their 
retreat, when the startling cry of ' March on, the Indians are at our heels,' would revive their 
drooping energies and give strength to their weakened limbs. At five o'clock in the morning 
[7th July], they reached Fort Ann, where they were joined by manv of the invalids who had 
been carried up Wood Creek in boats. A number of the sick, with the canniju, provisions and 
most of the baggage, were left behind at Skenesborough. 

On the 7th, a small reinforcement, sent from Fort Edward by Schuyler, arrived at Fort Ann. 
About the same time a detachment of British troops approached within sight of the fort. This 
detachment was attacked from the fc;rt, and repulsed with some loss; a surgeon, a wounded cap- 
tain, and twelve privates were taken prisoners by the Americans. The ne.xt day Fort Ann was 
burned, and the garrison retreated to l-'ort Edward, which was then occupied by General Schuy- 
ler."^" History of Saratoga County. New York," by the late Nathaniel Bartlett Sylvester. 



172 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

he had no time to obstruct Wood Creek on that day. Next day he 
fought an engagement three miles in advance of Fort Anne — i. e., in 
the direction of Skenesborough — retreated to Fort Anne, burned the 
post, and fell back nine miles farther to Fort Edward — having marched 
fifteen miles, besides fighting desperately for a number of hours on 
the yth. Consequently he could have had no time on the 7th. When 
and how did he perform the engineering feats attributed to him?" 

To the same effect, also, Lieutenant-Colonel Kingston, Burgoyne's 
Adjutant-General in Burgoyne's trial before Parliament testified: "I 
remember our scouts giving information that a bridge was laid over 
the Hudson river, very near the enemy's camp ; and it was the opinion 
of some ver}" confidential men that were employed in that army in that 
capacity, and were much under the direction of General Fraser, that 
on the approach of Sir Henry Clinton's army, the army of Mr. Gates 
could not stand us, but would cross the river and go towards New 
England." 

ANECDOTES OF THE BATTLE. 

It was during the most severe part of the conflict and while "the 
woods, the rocks and the hills were re-echoing with the continuous 
crash of inusketry" that Colonel Van Rensselaer was desperately 
wounded by a musket ball in his leg while in the act of stepping over 
a fallen tree. The ball entered his thigh, broke the bone and glanced 
tip to the hip-joint where it lodged and remained for nearly forty years 
in his person and could not be traced until after his death. Such a 
fearful wound, of course, put a stop to his further participation in the 
fight and threw him on his back behind the mouldering tree trunk. 
Notwithstanding, however, the intense agony which he suffered, he 
called out to those of his men who in blank consternation had run to 
his assistance. " Don't mind me my brave fellows; leave me and 
charge the enemy. Charge I Charge! I say." His mandate was 
obeyed and for fully two hours, without a leader, these hastily gath- 
ered and undisciplined yeomanry, of five hundred men, entirely mus- 
tered on the Van Rensselaer manor, maintained their advantage over 
some of the finest troops of Great Britain. Indeed, the stand thus 
taken by Colonel Xan Rensselaer's tenants held Burgoyne in check 
an entire day and enabled General Schuyler to remove the artillery 
and stores from Fort George, strengthen his position in Bemis Heights 
and ofain invaluable time. 



HEROISM OF COLONEL VAN RENvSSELAER. 173 

The gallant leader at Fort Anne refused every proffer of assistance 
after receiving his wound and persisted in the advance of all his men 
after the retreating foe. In consequence he was soon left alone, but 
his anxiety to calculate the result of the onset induced him ever and 
anon to brave the pangs of an effort to overlook the obstructing log. 
When satisfied b}- the still receding noise of contention, he sought 
again his more comfortable position on the level earth. At the ex- 
piration of those seemingly unending hours he heard the sound of 
approaching footsteps among the rustling underbrush. Looking over 
the log he found the noise was occasioned by a young rustic, whose 
soiled garments, together with sundry circular impressions upon his 
lips, evidently inade from a foul gun-barrel, proclaimed liim late from 
the scene of action. Whether his prowess had been exerted in favor 
of King or Rebel was not known to the Colonel, who consequently 
hailed him. 

" Who comes there ?" 

"Holloa," ejaculated the startled youth and catching a glimpse of 
the head from which the unexpected demand had issued, and of the 
musket in the act of being leveled at him over the log, he quickly 
ensconced himself behind a neighboring tree. Having reloaded his 
piece he replied: " I am a Continental soldier, and who the devil are 
you?" "I am Colonel Van Rensselaer," was the answer. L^pon 
hearing this, the brave fellow immediately left his hiding-place and 
soon, collecting a few of his comrades, bore, with their assistance, the 
Avoimded ofhcer to the fcjrt. In his latter days the Colonel often men- 
tioned the manly conduct of this soldier with pleasure. ' 

R. Lamb, a sergeant in the Royal Welsh Fusileers, and the one 
referred to above as a "participant in the action " and who was the 
one left in charge of the wounded, was evidently a man of education 
and culture. ' He gives in his Joicnial of Occjirrences during the late 

' At Fort Anne Colonel Van Rensselaer's wound was hastilj- dressed and as the evacuation of 
the fort was decided upon, he was again raised upon the shoulders of his devoted men and borne 
fifteen miles to Fort FMward, whence he was put on a battean and floated down to AUjany, hav- 
ing as his companions Captain Montgomery and other prisoners of war. Being too ill to be taken 
to his residence in Greenbush, both of these officers were placed under the skillful hands of Dr. 
Samuel Stringer— Surgeon-General of the forces under General Schuyler, and a man of great 
eminence in the medical profession, ranking among the very first practitiojiers of his day. He 
died in 1818. 

For the above facts bf)th in the text and note, the author is greatly indebted lo Mrs. Catharinu 
V. K. Bonney's Historical Gleanings. 

Mrs. Bonney is the grand-daughter of Colonel Van Rensselaer. 

" After the war he returned to his native place, Dublin, and taught an excellent school for 
manv vears. 



in WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

American Wai- (Dublin 1809) the followino; graphic account of the 
action at Fort Anne, which, being- from the pen of an eye-witness and 
participant in the battle is well worthy of quoting and of preservation. 
He writes: 

" I very narrowly escaped myself from being taken prisoner at that 
time [/. e. at the Battle of Fort Anne] as I was just in the act of 
assisting the surgeon in dressing Captain Montgomery's wound, when 
the enemy came pouring down upon us like a mighty torrent ; in con- 
sequence whereof I was the last man that ascended the hill. I had 
not been there five minutes when Lieutenant Westrop, who was by 
my side, was shot through the heart. A few minutes after a man a 
short distance upon my left, received a ball in his forehead, which 
took off the roof of his skull. He reeled round, turned up his eyes, 
muttered some words and fell dead at my feet. After the Americans 
had retreated, we formed on the hill. It was a distressing- sight to 
see the wounded men bleeding on the ground, and what made it more 
so, the rain came down like a deluge upon us, and still, to add to the 
distress of the sufferers, there was nothing to dress their wounds, as 
the srnall medicine-box which was filled with salve, was left behind 
with Sergeant vShelly and Captain Montgomery at the time of our 
movement up the hill. The poor fellows earnestly entreated me to 
tie up their wounds. Immediately I took off my shirt, tore it up and 
with the help of a soldier's wife (the only woman who was with us 
and who also kept close by her husband's side during the engage- 
i-nent) ' made some bandages, stopped the bleeding ot their Vv^ounds 
and conveyed them in blankets to a small hut about two miles in our 
rear. * * * q^^.^ regiment now marched back to vSkenesborough, 
leaving me behind to attend to the wounded with a small guard for 
our protection. I was directed that, in case I was either surrounded 
or overpowered by the Americans, to deliver a letter, which General 
Burgoyne gave me, to their commanding officer. There I remained 
seven days with the wounded men, expecting every moment to be 
taken prisoners; but although we heard the enemy cutting trees everv 
night during our stay in order to block up the passages of the road 
and the river [/. e. Wood Creek] we were never molested." 

' So it would seem as if there wei-e "Moll Pitchers" on the Enj;jlish side during the Rev(.)lution 
as well HS on our own ! How interesting it would be to trace the descendants of this chivalric 
woman. Perhaps, for aught we know to the contrary, her descendants may even now be occupy- 
ing positions of great trust in the Government of the United States, for very many of these 
English troops eventually settled in this country. 



IMPORTANCE OF FIGHT AT FORT ANNE. 175 

Meanwhile, General Phillips, learning upon his arrival at the de- 
serted and eharred ruins of Fort Anne, that the enemy had retired, 
immediately marched back to Skenesboroug-h, leaving- behind a small 
guard to take care of the wounded and, on the 13th of July, the 
.\mericans reoccupied the site of the fort. 

General Burgoyne, in accordance with his usual policy, claimed in 
his reports to the British ministry, a victory in this affair — a claim 
which was clearly not justified by the facts. He certainl}' did not 
retain possession of the battle-field; and not only does General Reide- 
sel (the commander of the Brunswick contingent under Burgoyne) 
state in his "Journal," that "the English, after a long fight at Fort 
Anne were forced to retreat," but the British abandoned Captain 
]Montg(jmery, son of Sir William Montgomery, Bart, of Dublin and a 
brother-in-law of Lord Townshend, and also a wounded officer of 
great merit, a surgeon and other prisoners, when, in the language of 
Burgoyne, in describing this action to Lord George (xcrmain — they 
" changed ground." This scarcely reads like a victory. 

This memorable action — the Battle of Fort Anne — has never occu- 
pied the place in the history of the Revolutionary War to which its 
importance entitles it. Even Bancroft par excellence the historian of 
the United States passes it over with a brief allusion. And yet its 
importance canndt be overrated. It occurred comparatively a short 
time previous to the two great battles which resulted in the crushing 
defeat and surrender of Burgoyne on the heights of Saratoga and 
Schiu'lerville, and was swallowed up and forgotten in the superior 
brilliance and importance of those decisive conflicts. It was main- 
tained for an entire day in a series of desperate and bloody skirmishes 
by a force of one thousand men against an advanced brigade of Bur- 
goyne, composed of the flower of his army and commanded by the 
best military talent of that age. Not even Churchill — the famous 
Duke of Marlborough — the greatest general between Caesar and 
Napoleon the world has ever produced — had such an array of able 
lieutenants. Fort Anne, in Washington Coiinty, was indeed, an hon- 
ored field for the preliminary skirmishes and engagements between 
the contending armies before the final surrender. It was fought by 
order of (Tcneral Schuyler, who, realizing the importance of checking 
the enemy's advance at that point, gave explicit directions to defend 
Fort Anne at '' all hazards." There were large supplies intended for 
the use of the American arm\' at Tic()ndero<'-a and Lake (icorgc. 



176 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

where they had been detained in consequence of hearing of the in- 
vestment by land and water of our works on Lake Champlain ; and to 
favor the design of the detachment of wagons and the other commis- 
sariat sent to remove those supplies back to Fort Edward, General 
Schuyler despatched Col. Henry K. Van Rensselaer to Fort Anne to 
collect the militia from Washington County and oppose the British 
who were in pursuit of Colonel Long's scattered command. In fact, 
it was in consequence of this that the battle with the Ninth regiment 
took place. 



CHAPTER XIV. 



1777- 
BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN CONTINUED. 

Events Which Followed Close on the Battle of Fort Anne — Schuyler Delays 
THE March oe BrROOVNE — Indian Atrocities — Mlkdek of the Allen FajMilv. 

Up to the time of Burgoyne's occupying Skenesborough, all had 
gone well. From that point, however, his fortunes began to wane. 
His true course would have been to return to Ticonderoga and thence 
up Lake George to the fort of that name, whence there was a direct 
road to Fort Edward ; instead of which he determined to push on to 
Fort Anne and Fort Edward, a course which gave Schiiyler ample 
time to gather the yeomanry of Washington County together and 
effectually oppose his progress. If in place of making a road across a 
low, wooden, broken country, converted into a marsh, flooded by very 
unusually heavy rains, he had, as I have said, returned to Ticonderoga 
and followed the route of Lake George, indicated by his King, he 
could have been at Albany as soon as he reached the Hudson at Fort 
Edward. ' Indeed, (Gordon, the historian, conclusively demonstrates 

' I .say "indicated by his Kinjj" advisedly. For it is a fact not Xf"erally known, that Georg-e 
in was as well posted in rejjard to the topography of the country as any of his generals. In 
fact more so. I have before me now, as I write, a little and very rare map describing the ground 
over which Burgoyne \yas to march; the depth of water at every one hundred rods, in Lakes 
Champlain and Lake (ieorge, etc., which in his closet the Kin.g was wont to study and digest 
and if his generals had followed his advice, the result of this campaign might have been differ- 
ent. 



ERROR IN ADOPTING FORT ANNE ROUTE. 177 

by prcjofs founded on personal experience that a mounted party of 
which he was one, breakfasted at Ticonderoga and, partly in the sad- 
dle and partly in batteaux, carrying; their horses with them, reached 
Fort Edward by 8 ]>. u. on an October day, 1776. From Lake George 
to Fort Edward there was a most excellent road, which an Italian 
traveller years afterward, records as still in the best condition. It is 
true that Burgoyne, to achieve such a master stroke, would have had 
to leave his artillery behind ; but these heavy guns were never of any 
use to him, and clogged his movements, always sufficiently impeded 
by his other indispensable trains. 

The excuse, inoreover, which Burgoyne gave for not going around 
by Lake George, " that the fort (Fort George) would have detained 
him," is not adequate, for it would have offered no opposition what- 
ever. Fort George, as Schuyler very truly wrote to Washington as a 
reason for abandoning it at the time, " was part of an unfinished bas- 
tion of an intended fortification. ' In it was a barrack capable of con- 
taining between thirty and fifty men, without ditch, without wall, 
without cistern and without any picket to prevent an enemy from 
running over the wall ; so small indeed as not to contain above one 
hundred and fifty inen and commanded by ground greatly overlooking 
it and within point blank shot, and so situated that five hundred men 
may lie between the bastion and the lake, without being seen from 
this d-x/r^^^^/j/ defensible fortress. " Neither, however, do I give the 
least credence to the report current at the time that Burgoyne chose 
the route to Fort Anne in order to oblige his friend, Major Skene — a 
large land owner in that region, as we have seen, by giving him the 
use of his troops to open for him a road to the Hudson river. That 
general, whatever else his faults — and he had many — was, as I have 
before remarked, an honorable man. He simply erred in judgment. '•' 

" This " bastion" is still in existence, though covered up with weeds and undergrowth. I 
have been there repeatedly. This bastion is often confounded by visitors with an old lime-kiln 
near by, who having viewed the kiln, go away, under the impression that they have seen Fort 
George ! 

- A sketch of Major Skene up to the American Revolution has already been given in Chapter 
XI. It only remains to add that Skene, who by the way, was a native of Halyards in Fifeshire, 
Scotland and a descendent of Sir William Wallace, was, as we have seen, at the outbreak of the 
Revolution, arrested by a band of Connecticut volunteers, and with his family, taken to Middle- 
town, Ct. He was finally exchanged in 1776. He then sailed for England, but returned with 
Burgoyne, and as we see, was taken prisoner with that General's army. After the war he re- 
turned to America and made an unsuccessful effort to recover his property. He went back to 

[ 22 ] 



178 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The country between Fort Anne and Fort Edward, a distance of 
about sixteen miles, was extremely unequal and broken up by wide 
and deep swamps. General Schu3der neglected no means of adding 
by art to the difficulties with which nature seemed to have purposel)- 
interdicted this passage. Trenches under the immediate supervision 
of Colonel Fellows, were opened; the roads and paths obstructed; 
large rocks thrown into Wood Creek ; the bridges broken up ; while in 
the only practicable defiles, immense trees were cut in such a manner 
on both sides of the road, as to fall across lengthwise, which, with 
their branches interlocked, presented an unsurmountable barrier. In 
fact, the wilderness, in itself so horrible, was rendered almost impen- 
etrable. ^ Burgoyne, consequently, was compelled not only to remove 
all these obstructions, but to build more that forty bridges, one par- 
ticularly, over a morass of more than two miles in length. 

On the night of the 17th of July, having superintended all of the 
above arrangements. General Schuyler reached Fort Edward, twenty- 
one miles south of Skenesborough. It is admitted that the condition 



England and died at Addersey Lodge near Stoke Goldington, Bucks, in 1810. As we have stated 
had the Colonists made any effort to conciliate him, he would have undoubtedly remained an 
invaluable citizen. 

As showing, moreover, the sentiments of Major Skene regarding the war, and also, that a 
little generous and considerate treatment of him on the part of the people of Washington County 
would have produced different results, and perhaps, have changed Skeene's attitude towards 
the Colonists. I here give an extract frorh a letter to Thomas Powell (one of the Board of Trade 
for the American Colonies) from John Morton of Philadelphia, under date of June 5th, 1775. I 
find it among the letters of Lord Darthmouth, just published by the " High Commissioner " at 
London, England. " Calling the American Rebels has made them desperate, and they now mean 
to act as such. Major Skeene, Governor of Ticonderoga, Crown Point and the Lakes, has arrived 
at Philadelphia, but as these places have been taken possession of by New England men, he has 
no government to go to and it is under a guard of American militia. He sincerely wishes recon- 
ciliation, as he says ' the conte.st is horrible.' " 

' Thus, Thomas Aubury, an officer under Burgoyne, in a letter dated " Camp at Fort Edward 
August 6th, 1777," writes: "The country between our late encampment at Skenesborough and 
this place was a continuation of woods and creeks, interspersed with deep morasses; and to add 
to these natural impediments, the enemy had very industriously' augmented them by felling 
immense trees, and various other modes, that it was with the utmost pains and fatigue we could 
we could work our w^ay through them. Exclusive of these, the watery grounds and marshes 
were so numerous that we were under the necessity of constructing no less than forty bridges to 
pass them, and over one morass there was a bridge of near two miles in length." * ^^ * * 
" On our way we marched across the Pine plains, which derive their name from an extensive 
space of level country, on which grows nothing but very loftly pine trees On these plains we 
frequently met with the enemy's encampment, and about the center of them, upon some rising 
ground, there were exceedingly strong works, defended by an immense abattis, where it was 
thought they would wait our approach. But this position was not suited to the Americans, for 
if their lines were formed, their rear was an open extent of country. It is a general observation 
that they never make a stand but upon an eminence almost inaccessible, and a wood to cover 
their retreat." 



AMERICANS GAINED BY FORT ANNE FIGHT. 179 

of affairs at this point was in the last degree serious. There were not 
fifteen hundred men all told at Fort Edward and these were deficient 
in everything — personal and military equipments, rations and even mus- 
kets. What had, in the meantime, become of St. Clair, with the 
remnants of the garrisen of Ticonderoga, no one had the least idea. 
Nevertheless, Schuyler had carried out so cleverly his plan of ob- 
structing Burgoyne's advance, that, with the assistance of the Polish 
engineer, Kosciusko, his practical strategy determined the fate of the 
campaign against Bui^goyne. The obstructions, moreover, which, as 
we have seen, Schuyler accumulated in front of the invading army, 
are acknowledged by every British writer. For example, Lieutenant 
Hadden, an officer under Burgoyne in his Journal which has recently 
found the light in print says : 

' ' The enemy; though not victorious, were the real gainers by this 
affair [i. e. the Battle of Fort Anne] the advantage they made of it, 
was to fell large trees across Wood Creek, and the Road leading by the 
side of it to Fort Anne, the clearing of which cost our arm}^ much 
labor and time, and gave the enemy spirits and leisure to wait [await] 
those reinforcements which enabled them to retire deliberately, 
always keeping near enough to prevent our sending out small detach- 
ments. A large corps advanced to Fort Anne (in place of the 9th 
regiment) would have increased the enemy's fears and prevented 
these delays. * * That corps certainly discovered that neither they 
were invincible, nor the Rebels all Poltroons." 

Schuyler, moreover, with an undespairing energy, took such meas- 
ures to gather troops in front of Burgoyne that he very soon had 
tripled his force. He likewise, exerted himself to get a little army 
of reliable militia together, under experienced officers, on the left 
flank of the British. These were the redoubtable "mountain men," 
imder Stark, who afterwards defeated Baum and Breyman. In 
furtherance of this design, while at Fort Edward and before Burgoyne 
had reached that place, not only were the baggage and stores brought 
in from Fort George, but he sent out bodies of militia, chiefly gath- 
ered from Washington County to obstruct the route from Skenesbor- 
ough, while the farmers, who still remained in the vicinity, were 
directed to send their cattle out of reach of the enemy. ' He also sent 
expresses to the Continental Congress and those of the American 
authorities who were nearer by, for all the regular troops that could 

' Johnson. 



180 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

possibly be sent him, and for all of the Washington militia that could 
by any means be induced to take the field. Nor was this all of his 
efforts. He was also compelled to keep close watch for spies. Tories 
were all around ; for as we have seen, many of the inhabitants of 
Washington County were in that category who, being closely asso- 
ciated with the rest of the settlers, were able, with little difficulty, to 
furnish information to the enemy regarding all of the American 
movements. A letter from Schuyler to Colonel John Williams ( of 
White Creek) of the Washington County regiment, dated the 14th of 
July and preserved among the Williams papers, states that the former 
had closely examined one Baker, sent under guard to the general, 
and that he was clearly convinced that he was an agent of the eneiny ; 
that he had placed him in close confinement, and should send him 
down the country. In the same letter also, Schuyler directs Colonel 
Williams to provision the militia as best he can ; informs him that the 
American scouts are out everywhere and that he has a large body of 
troops at Fort Anne ; adding that until they come away, the people of 
White Creek need not fear an attack. From this, it would appear 
that Fort Anne, or rather the charred remains, had been again reoc- 
cupied by the Americans after its evacuation by Colonel Long. 

The full text of this letter, here reproduced to show how inde- 
fatigable Schuyler was in his endeavors to restore confidence to the 
country and to learn from prisoners and deserters the condition of 
Burgoyne's army, is as follows: 

"Fort Edward, July 14, 1777. 
"Sir — Your note of this day has been delivered tome by Lieutenant Young. 
I have examined Mr. Baker and found him tripping in so many things, that I am 
clearly convinced he is an agent of the enemy and sent not only to give intelli- 
gence, but to intimidate the inhabitants and induce them to join the enemy. I 
have closely confined him and have sent him down the country. He informs me 
that one John Foster, is also gone to the enemy, and as he supposes he will be 
back in a day or two, I beg he may be made prisoner and sent to me under a good 
guard. You must furnish your militia with provisions in the best manner you can, 
and the allowance will be made for it. I have scouts out in every quarter, and a 
large body at Fort Anne, and until they come away, I am not apprehensive that an 
attack will be made at White Creek. It would be the height of imprudence to 
disperse my army into different quarters, unless there is the most evident necessity. 

" I am sir, 

' ' Your most humble servant, 
" Ph. Schuyler. 
" Colonel Williams." 



RUSE OF GENERAL SCHUYLER. 181 

It was at this time, and while sojourning at Fort Edward, that 
Schuyler so perplexed the British commander by a trick, by means of 
a letter which he contrived should fall into Burgoyne's hands, that the 
latter was on its receipt greatly in doubt whether to advance or re- 
treat. In this strategem, however, the American general only fol- 
lowed the same tactics as those pursued by a preceding general, of 
whom he had doubtless read and whose deeds he wished to emulate ; 
for General Schuyler, being a great reader and observer, doubtless 
kept himself abreast of all contemporary events. 

It will be recalled that Frederick the Great, after Liegnizt, the i6th 
of August, 1760, caused a letter or despatch to fall into the hands of 
the Russian General Chernicheff, which induced the Muscovite, with 
every chance of success before him, to retreat precipitately. In 
Schuyler's case,' he, likewise, by astuteness, turned the tables on the 
enem3^ A communication had been sent by one, a Mr. Lewis, from 
Canada, to General Sullivan. It was concealed under the false bottom 
of a canteen. Schuyler, thereupon, substituted an answer worded in 
such a manner that if it reached Burgoyne it would cause him the 
greatest perplexity. Its purport he confided to certain parties around 
him and then sent it forward by a messenger who was to conduct 
himself so as to be captured. The bearer, as prearranged, was taken 
prisoner and the paper which he bore was placed in the hands of 
Burgoyne. This had greater effect than ever Schuyler coiild have 
expected. Stedman, the British staff-officer and historian (the origi- 
nal works of whom, very rare, I have before me as I write) himself 
acknowledged that Burgoyne was " so completely duped and puzzled 
by it for several days that he was at a loss whether to advance or 
retreat." This result, so flattering to Schuyler's sagacity, was com- 
mAinicated to one of Schuyler's staff after Burgoyne's surrender by 
an English officer. 

While Burgoyne was at Fort Anne, at which place he arrived on 
the 23d of July, his Indian allies began to escape from the humane 
leash in which he had, up to this time, kept them well in hand. Now, 
however, their savage instincts aroused and consequently restive and 
in defiance of the proclamation issued by the British general at the 
camp on the Bouquet, they began a series of marauding upon the 
peaceful farmers of Washington County, which was invariably at- 
tended by the most frightly atrocities. This statement is fully borne 
out by an entry in the "Journal" of Rev. Dr. Enos Hitchcock, a 



182 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

chaplain in the American army, during the Bnrgoyne campaign, and 
now just brought to light through the efforts of the Rhode Island 
Historical Society, in which, under date of July 28, 1777, he writes: 

" An express from Fort Edward about break of Day, ^ay [sic] they are sur- 
rounded ; this account afterwards proves groundless, * * * A scout returned 
towards evening — who went out yesterday, who gives an account of a horrid mur- 
der of a family about four miles N. E. of Fort Miller; the father, mother and six 
Children killed and left to be torn by the Hogs. 

" Colonel Brewer, with 150 men .sent to Fort Miller to scout the woods N. E. 
Colo. Alley, with the same number from Moses Creek to go East and meet them — 
about 9 o'clock a man and boy killed and one wounded near Fort Miller by two 
lurking Fellows [Indians] who contended about the scalp of a boy ; the man not 
scalped; 11 o'clock a small party went out back of Headquarters and were fired 
upon by Indians — one Corpl. killed, private wounded; about the same time an In- 
dian fired upon a sentry N. E. from Gen. Nixon's Brigade. A small scout of 20 
came in, which met with a party of Indians, supposed 70, fired and killed one and 
ran — about 12 o'clock, alarmed by an Express from Fort Miller that they were 
attacked by a number of Indians. One of our spies came in, who says the enemy 
had almost cleared the road from Fort Anne which we had blocked up." 

Nor was the murder of this poor family whose bodies were thrown 
" to the hogs," the only one in this bloody category — which, perhaps, 
eventually contributed more than anything else, to arouse the people 
and defeat Burgoyne. 

On the 26th, another still bloodier tragedy was enacted, which 
drove many of the inhabitants of Argyle to seek safety in the forests. 
The day before (the 25 th) Le Loup, the infamous half-breed leader of 
the savages — released as I have said, from Burgoyne's leash — had set 
out from Burgoyne's camp, now advanced to about four miles of Fort 
Edward and encamped near Moss Street in the present town of 
Kingsbury, on one of his usual predatory excursions. In the course 
of their wanderings they came to the settlement of Mr. John Allen, 
in Argyle. He was a staunch loyalist, though not particularly dis- 
tinguished for any exhibition of partizan warmth. Relying upon the 
protection which Burgoyne had promised to all those who espoused 
the cause of the King, they remained comparatively easy in their 
possessions. While their patriot neighbors fled, leaving the ripe 
grain to rot in the fields, they lingered behind to watch their flocks 
and gather in the harvest. It has been handed down by tradition, 
however, that notwithstanding their political predilections and the 
promise of Burgoyne's protection, they were not without serious 



MASSACRE OF THE ALLEN FAMILY. 183 

apprehensions of the savages, and that they had resolved to seek a 
more distant and secure abode, as soon as the season of harvest should 
be passed. Some misinformed historians have asserted that John 
Allen was engaged in packing up his goods and preparing to depart 
immediately to Alban}-, at the moment Le Loup appeared. The fact 
is, says Wilson in his life of Jane McCrea, from whom this account of 
the inassacre of the Allen family is chiefly taken, he had passed the 
forenoon of that day laboring in his fields, three slaves belonging to 
his father-in-law assisting him. A younger sister of Mrs. Allen had 
left her father's at a late hour in the morning on an errand to her 
brother-in-law. Not returning when expected, a colored lad was sent 
to ascertain the cause of her detention. Presently he came running 
back, throwing his arms wildly and haggard with affright, screaming 
that "his young missus and Massa Allen and all the family were 
dead I " Forthwith, repairing to Allen's residence, a scene of horror 
presented itself that " sickens the imagination even at this distance 
of time to contemplate." In the same room lay stretched upon the 
floor, nine ghastly and bloody corpses, all of which that same morn- 
ing had been full of life and health. They were the inanimate bodies 
of Mr. Allen, his wife, his sister-in-law, his three children, and the 
three slaves. Their scalps had been torn off and their cold, staring 
eye-balls, stained with blood and half protruding from their sockets, 
too plainly showed the mortal fear they suffered at the moment of 
their deaths. Not one was left to relate the manner of the awful 
massacre — no eye but the Almighty beheld the infernal butchers per- 
form their horrid work. All appearances, however, indicated that the 
devoted family were seated unsuspectingly around the table, partak- 
ing of their noon-day meal, when the savage ministers of death — let 
loose by the Mother Coiuiby who so cherished her dear colonies! — fell 
suddenly upon them. The table, around which had gathered a lovely 
family, stood in its accustomed place, in the center of the room, while 
by certain tokens, it was considered evident that they had arisen from 
it in confusion, on the unexpected entrance of the murderers. The 
house had been ransacked and plundered, but the plunderers were 
gone. They had departed silently and stealthily as they came. Not 
a sob or a groan broke the awful stillness that prevailed. " There 
lay," in the words of one who first broke in upon the scene, " the stiff" 
and motionless corpses on the bloody floor, while silence, emphatically 
the silence of death brooded over the scene. Dismayed, appalled, the 



184 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

horror-stricken kindred lingered not to perform the rites of burial, 
but seized by an overmastering fear, fled into the farthest solitude of 
the then primeval forest, hoping to find that safety of which they 
were not assured while beneath the family roof. ' Their object was to 
make their way, unobserved, to the garrison of Fort Edward, and to 
this end they crept from thicket to thicket, through the long hours of 
the night, startled by the slightest sound that disturbed the gloomy 
silence of the woods. This same party of Indians, moreover, are said 
to have slain on the same day and in the same vicinity, an entire 
family nained Barnes, and also a man by the name of John White. 

As a consequence of this awful calamity, fear fell upon the settlers 
of Washington County, far and near — even to its southern limits near 
Albany, where an account of this and similar horrors was spread 
abroad. The patriots of New Perth (now Salem) assembled nightly 
with their wives and children within the temporary fortification they 
had prepared ; while the Royalists, distrusting Burgoyne's proclama- 
tion, flocked from all quarters to the English camp, uttering loud 
remonstsances and demanding the promised " Protection." It was to 
them that Eraser made the celebrated but unfeeling remark — " It is a 
conquered country and we must wink at these things." Nothing, 
however, shows that General Burgoyne himself, endorsed any such 
sentiment — and to me, this remark of Eraser's seems exceedingly 
doubtful. 

Nor, is it any wonder that, in view of these fiendish deeds, Burke 
arose in the House of Commons and denounced his government in 
the strongest terms for the employment of savages. In fact, his mas- 
terly oratory and herculean efforts in behalf of the Americans — 
never, by the way, ever estimated at their full worth — did, perhaps, 
more for the eventual independence of the Colonies than the latter's 
alliance with Erance — at least, it made peace more certain. Even 
Lord North and his abject satellites were powerless in the face of 
Burke's noble stand in the defence o-f the Colonists. It should, how- 
ever, be kept in miind that Lord North was in reality only a tool of 
George III since there is reason to suppose that, in his innermost 
heart, he agreed with Burke. I suppose it were bootless to moralize 
on this further; but, do the people of Washington Coimty — under 

- There is a possibility of course, that the murder of this Allen family may have been the one 
referred to in Rev. Enos Hiscock's Journal— the "three slaves" being the children, making His- 
cock's " six." Still, as this is by no means certain, I give both incidents. 



THE JANE McCREA TRAGEDY. 185 

whose eyes this history will come — realize the difference now between 
their beautiful, peaceful and secure homesteads and the ever present 
terrors of their ancestors — a period not so very remote either. This 
account should at least, as Shakespeare says, "give them pause" 
when they feel like dwelling on what they think was the "good old 
days " in contrast with the present. 

But among all of these brutal massacres none attracted such atten- 
tion at the time as the accidental killing of Jane McCrea, directly 
caused by one of these blood-thirsty Indian forays — an event which 
was productive of such far-reaching consequences, that a full and 
detailed account of the occurrence will form the subject of the next 
chapter. 



CHAPTER XV. 

1777. 

BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN CONTINUED. 

The Jane McCkea Tragedy — -The Last Days of Her Lover, David Jones — His 
Personal Appearance, Shortly Before His Death — Bravery of Mrs. General 
Schuyler — N.a.rrow Escape of General Schuyler from an Indian Assassin — 
Effect of These Cruelties in Arousing Popular AVrath. 

Probably no event, either in ancient or modern warfare has received 
so many versions as the killing of Miss Jane McCrea, during the 
Revolutionary War. It has been commemorated in story and in song 
and narrated in grave histories in as many different ways as there 
have been writers upon the subject.- As an incident, merely, of the 
Revolution, accuracy in its relation is not, perhaps, of much moment. 
When, however, measured by its results, it at once assumes an impor- 
tance which justifies such an investigation as shall bring out the 
truth. 

The slaying of Jane McCrea was, to the people of New York and 
especially to those of Washington County, what the Battle of Lexing- 
ton was to the New England colonies. In each case, the effect was 
to consolidate the inhabitants more firmly against the invader. The 

[23] 



18G WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

blood of the unfortunate maiden was not shed in vain. From every 
drop, like the teeth of the mythical dragon of old, hundreds of armed 
yoemen arose ; and, as has been justly said, her name was passed as a 
note of alarm along the banks of the Hudson, and, as a rallying cry 
among the Green Mountains of Vermont, brought down her hardy 
sons. It thus, in a great measure, contributed to Burgoyne's defeat, 
which became a precursor and the principal cause of American Inde- 
pendence. 

Jane McCrea was born in Bedminster (now Lamington) N. J., in 
1753, and was killed near Fort Edward, July 27th, 1777. She was the 
second daughter of Rev. James McCrea, a Presbyterian clergyman of 
Scotch descent, whose father, William, was an elder in White Clay 
Creek Church, near Newark, Delaware. After his death she made her 
home with her brother John at Fort Edward, N. Y. This brother was 
a staunch patriot. He had been with the unfortunate expedition of 
General Montgomery, and had fought in the battle of Quebec and 
when General Schuyler, in command at Fort Edward, called on the 
militia of Washington County to take the field (as related in the last 
chapter) he promptly obeyed the summons. Between him and David 
Jones, her lover, there had arisen an estrangement growing out of 
their opposite sympathies in relation to the war. But Jane still clung 
to her betrothed notwithstanding her brother's dislike for him. 

Miss McCrea is described by those who knew her personally, as a 
young woman of rare acccmplishments. great personal attractions, 
and of a remarkable sweetness of disposition. She was from all 
trustworthy accounts, of medium stature, finely formed, and of a deli- 
cate blonde complexion. Her hair was of a golden brown and silken 
lustre, and when unbound, trailed upon the ground. Her father was 
devoted to literarv pursuits, and she thus had acquired a taste for 
reading unusual in one of her age in those early times. 

The story of the tragedy, as told by Bancroft, Irving and others ' 
is that as Jane McCre was on her way from Fort Edward to meet her 

^ I am gratified to know that this version of the tragedy has been accepted by William CuUen 
Bryant in his "History of the United States," who gives me full credit. I state this that my 
readers ma}^ have some confidence in this entirely nejv account. 1 am also, of course, aware that 
Sparks in his "Life of Arnold," gives a different version of this tragedy, related to him, as he 
. says, by an eye-witness of the murder, viz.: a Samuel Standish who was one of the guard at the 
fort. Still, I believe the facts to be as stated in the text. But as I have said in the beginning of 
this sketch there have been numerous and different accounts of the tragedy. The only thing 
left, therefore, for the conscientious historian is, to try and sift the kernel from the chaff and 
present the facts as he understands them, to the reader. 



CORRECT ACCOUNT OF TRAGEDY. 187 

lover, Lieutenant Jones, at the British camp, under the protection of 
the Indians, a quarrel arose between the latter as to which should 
have the promised reward, when one of them, to terminate the dis- 
pute, "sunk," as Mr. Bancroft says, "his tomahawk into the skull " 
of their imfortunate charg-e. ' The correct account, however, of the 
Jane McCrea tragedy, gathered from the statement made by Mrs. 
McNeal to General Burgoyne on the 28th of July, 1777 in the marquee 
of her cousin. General Eraser and corroborated by several people well 
acquainted with Jane McCrea, and by whom it was related to the late 
Judge William Hay of Saratoga Springs, a veracious and most indus- 
trious historian, and taken down from their lips, and by him com- 
municated to me, is entirely different from the version given by Mr. 
Bancroft. 

On the morning of the 27th of July, 1777, Miss McCrea and Mrs. 
McNeal were in the latter's house at Fort Edward, preparing to set 
out for Fort Miller for greater security, as rumors had, for several 
da5^s, been rife of hostile Indians in the vicinity. Their action was 
the restilt of a message sent to them early in the morning by General 
Arnold, who had, at the same time, despatched to their assistance 
Lieutenant Palmer with some twenty men, with orders to place their 
furniture and effects on board a bateau and row the family down to 
Fort Miller. 

Lieutenant Pahner, having been informed by Mrs. McNeal that 
nearly all her household goods had been already put on board the 
bateau^ remarked that he, with the soldiers, was going up the hill as 
far as an old block-house, for the purpose of reconnoitering, but would 
not be long absent. The lieutenant and his party, however, not 
returning, Mrs. McNeal and Jane McCrea concluded not to wait 
longer, but to ride on horseback to Colonel (John) McCrea's ferry, 



' As the tomahawk, in this history, is frequently mentioned, it may be well to quote from 
Aubrey his discription of that {par excellence) \\\A\&,r\ weapon. He writes: "This in.strument," 
(the tomahawk) "they" (the Indians) "make great use of in war; for, in pursuing an enemy, if 
they find it impossible to come up with them, they, with the utmost dexterity, throw and seldom 
fail striking it into the skull or back of those they pursue, by that rheans arresting them in 
flight. The tomahawk is nothing more than a small hatchet having either a sharp spike, or a 
cup for tobacco affixed opposite to the part that is intended for cutting, but they are mostly made 
to answer two purposes — that of a pipe and a hatchet. When they purchase them of the traders, 
they take off the wooden handle and substitvite in its stead a hollow cane one, which they do in a 
curious manner." 

Some years since, my friend, Hon. C. C. Lester, found in an old stony cabin near "Wood- 
lawn," Saratoga Springs, one of the tomahawks above described, which, through his kindness, 
is now in mv cabinet and before me as I write. 



188 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

leaving the lading of the boat in charge of a black servant. When 
the horses, however, were brought up to the door, it was found that 
one side-saddle was missing, and a boy ' was accordingly despatched 
to the house of a Mr. Gillis for the purpose of borrowing a side-sad- 
dle or pillion. 

While watching for the boy's return, Mrs. McNeal heard a discharge 
of fire-arms " and looking out of a window, saw one of Lieutenant 
Van Vechten's soldiers running along the military road towards the 
fort, pursued by several Indians. The fugitive, seeing Mrs. McNeal, 
waved his hat as a signal of danger and passed on, which the Indians 
perceiving, left off the pursuit and came toward the house. 

Seeing their intention, Mrs. McNeal screamed: " Get down cellar 
for 5'our lives! " On this Jane McCrea and the black woman. Eve, 
with her infant, retreated safely to the cellar, but Mrs. McNeal was 
caught on the stairs by the Indians and dragged back by the hair of 
her head by a powerful savage, who was addressed by his companions 
as the " Wyandot Panther.^' A search in the cellar was then begun, 
and the result was the discovery of Jane McCrea, who was brought 
up from her concealment, '' the Wyandot exclaiming upon seeing her, 
' ' My squaw, me find um agin — me keep um fast now, foreber, ugh ! 

By this time the soldiers had arrived at the fort, the alarm drum 
was beaten and a party of soldiers under Captain Van Vechten started 
in pursuit. Alarmed by the noise of the drum which they, in com- 
mon with Mrs. McNeal and Jenny, heard the Indians, after a hurried 
consultation, hastily lifted the two women upon the horses which had 
been waiting at the door to carry them to Colonel McCrea's ferry and 
started off iipon a run. Mrs. McNeal, however, having been placed 
upon the horse on which there was no saddle, slipped off and was 
thereupon carried in the arms of a stalwart savao-e. * 



' The name of this boy was Norman Morrison. It is not known what afterwards became of 
him, though tradition states, that, being small and active, he escaped from the Indians and 
reached his home in Hartford, Washington County, N. Y. 

^ So fatal was this discharge, that out of Lieutenant Palmer's party of twenty men, only 
eight remained. Van Vechten himself being killed on the spot. 

■' Judge Hay was informed by Adam, after he became a man, that his mother, Eve, had often 
described to him how she continued to conceal him and herself in an ash-bin beneath a fire-place, 
he luckih' not awaking to cry while the search was going on around them in the cellar. This 
fact was also confirmed by the late Mrs. Judge Cowen, of Saratoga Springs to Judge Hay. 

*• The party who did this was the same, under Le Loup, who had, but a few hours before, 
massacred the Allen family. See last chapter. 



SHOOTING OF JANE McCREA. 189 

At this point Mrs. McNeal lost sight of her companion, who, to use 
the language of Mrs. McNeal, "was then ahead of me and appeared 
to be firmly seated in the saddle, and held the rein, while several 
Indians seemed to guard her — the Wyandot still ascending the hill 
and pulling along by bridle-bit the affrighted horse upon which poor 
Jenn}' rode." The Indians, however, when half-way up the hill, were 
nearly overtaken by the soldiers, under Lieutenant Van Vechten, 
who, at this point began firing by platoons. At every discharge the 
Indians would fall ilat with Mrs. McNeal. By the time the top of 
the Fort Edward Hill had been gained, not an Indian was harmed, 
and one of them remarked to Mrs. McNeal, " Wagh! um no kill — um 
shoot too much high for hit." During the firing, two"or three of the 
bullets of the pursuing party hit Miss McCrea with a fatal effect, who 
falling from her horse, had her scalp torn off by her guide, the " Wy- 
andot Panther," in revenge for the loss of the reward given by Bur- 
goyne for every white prisoner — a reward considered equal to a barrel 
of rum. 

Mrs. McNeal, however, was carried to Griffith's house, and there 
kept by the Indians until the next day, when she was ransomed and 
taken to the British camp. "I never saw Jenny afterwards," says 
Mrs. McNeal, " nor anything that appertained to her person until my 
arrival in the British camp, when an aide-de-camp showed me a fresh 
scalp-lock which I could not mistake, because the hair was unusually 
fine, luxuriant, lustrous and dark as the wing of a raven. Till that 
evidence of her death was exhibited, I hoped, almost against hope, 
that poor Jenny had been either rescued by our pursuers (in whose 
army her brother, Stephen McCrea, was a surgeon) or brought by our 
captors to some part, of the British encampment." 

While at Grifhth's house, Mrs. McNeal endeavored to hire an Indian 
named Captain Tommo, to go back and search for her companion, but 
neither he nor any of the Indians could be prevailed upon to venture 
even as far back as the brow of the Fort Edward hill to look down it 
for the " White Squaw," as they called Jenny. 

At dawn the following morning, the remains of Miss McCrea were 
gathered up by those who would have rescued her. They found it 
stark and ghastly, partly concealed beneath leaves and brush near a 
pellucid spring, which gushed forth by the side of a tree, ' and near 

' This tree called "The Jenny McCrea Tree" would probably have remained to this day had 
it not been cut down and made into relics to be sold to the curious visitor. 



190 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

by the corpse of Lieutenant Van Vechten stretched upon the earth. 
When they returned, her brother, with some women from his neigh- 
borhood, had arrived at the fort. He bent over her mangled remains 
and w^ept in bitterness of spirit. He knelt down and kissed her bloody 
forehead and would have clasped the decaying body in his arms, had 
not friends gently restrained him. They led him away from the sad 
spectacle and kindly sought to soothe him with many unavailing words 
of consolation. Her body, as well as that of Lieutenant Van Vechten 
was buried under the supervision of Colonel Morgan Lewis (then 
deputy-quartermaster general) on the bank of Moses Creek, near a 
fortified camp-ground, laid out by the celebrated Polish engineer, 
Kosciusko, three miles south of the fort and two miles south of her 
brother. John McCrea's farm, which was across the Hudson, and 
directly opposite the principal encampinent of General Schuyler. 
Here in a rude grave, they laid Jenny down to her last sleep, and 

To show that this statement is correct I clip from a paper of 1S53 the following 
advertisement: 

"AN INTERESTING RELIC OF THE REVOLUTION. 

The Subscriber, being censm-ed through the public prints for cutting down the 
famous Jane McCrea tree, and importuned by his friends, presents to the public 
elegant canes and boxes manufactured from this world-renowned tree, believing 
that an event fraught with so much interest, being connected with the Revolution 
and Independence of our County, that they will meet with a hearty response from 
every American. A case containing canes and boxes may be seen at the Crystal 
Palace and are for sale at the following places in this city: Leary&Co., hatters, 
Astor House, Broadway, N. Y., also on Forty-first street, south side of Palace. 

All other parties offering canes for sale, representing them to be made from the 
renowned Jane McCrea tree, are counterfeits, and will be dealt with accordingly. 

I certify that I am owner of the land on which grew the tree known as the Jane 
McCrea Tree, at Fort Edward, Washington County, N. Y. The tree died in 1849, 
and was cut down during the winter of 1853, and was sent to the shop of J. M. Bur- 
dick, to be manufactured into canes and boxes. Each article and piece having this 
engraving upon it is part of the same tree. Geo. Harvey. 

All Orders may be addressed to the Subscriber, at Fort Edward, Washington 
County, N. Y. Geo. H.^rvey. 

J. M. Burdick, Traveling Agent. 

References — We have known Mr. Harvey for years as a reputable merchant, and 
late Cashier of the Bank of Fort Edward, and have the fullest confidence to believe 
what he says. 

Freela.nd, Stuart & Co., J. P. Cronkhite, 54 Exchange Place. 

F.. Leake, Am. Ex. Bank. B. Mi'rray, Jun. Ass't. Cash. Am. Ex. Bank. 

New York, July 28, 1853. 



DOCTOR BARTLETT'S ACCOUNT OF TRAGEDY. 191 

" strong- men wept aloud as they turned froin the humble sepulcher 
and departed on their way." ' That same morning, Fort Edward was 
eyacuated, vSchuyler falling back on Moses Creek and the sprouts of 
the Mohawk now Waterford. 

The only statement which, while disproving- Mr. Bancroft's narra- 
tive, seems to conflict with the above account of the manner of her 
death, is the one made by Dr. Bartlett, a surgeon in the American 
army. This occurs in his report to the director-general of the hospi- 
tals of the Northern Department, dated at Moses Creek at head-quar- 
ters, at ten o'clock of the night of July 27, 1777, and is as follows: 

" I have this moment returned from Fort Edward, where a party of 
hell-hounds, in conjunction with their brethren, the British troops, 
fell upon an advanced guard, inhumanl)^ butchered, scalped and 
stripped four of them, wounded two more, each in the thigh, and four 
more are missing. 

" Poor Miss Jenny McCrea and the woman with whom she lived 
were taken by the savages, led up the hill to where there was a body 
of British troops, and there the poor girl was shot to death in cold 
blood, scalped and left on the ground, and the other woman not yet 
found. 

" The alarm came to camp at two p. m. I was at dinner. I imme- 
diately sent off to collect all the regular surgeons, in order to take 
some one or two of them along with me, btit the devil a bit of one was 
to be found. * * * 

"There is neither amputating instruments, crooked needle, nor 
tourniquet in all the camp. I have a handful of lint and two or three 
bandages, and that is all. What in the name of wonder I am to do in 
case of an attack, God only knows. Without assistance, without in- 
struments, without anything! " 

This statement, however, was made, as is apparent on its face, hur- 
riedly and under very great excitement. A thousand rumors were 
flying- in the air, and there had been no time to sift the kernels of 
truth from the chaff of unproven reports. But, in addition to this, 
the story of the surgeon is flatly contradicted by testimony, both at 
.the time of the occurrence and afterward. General Burgoyne's famous. 
" Bouquet Order " of the 21st of May, and his efforts, by appealing to 
their fears and love of gain to prevent any species of cruelty on the 
part of his savage allies — facts well known to his ofificcrs and men — 

> Wilson. 



192 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

render it simply impossible to believe the statement of Surgeon Bart- 
lett, that a "body of British troops" stood calmly by and witnessed 
the murder of a defenceless girl, and a girl, too, between whom and 
one of their comrades-in-arms there was known to be a betrothment. 
Leaving, however, probabilities, we have the entirely different and 
detailed account of Jenny's companion and hostess, Mrs. McNeal, 
" the woman with whom she lived," and who, as " the woman not yet 
found," was endeavoring — while the surgeon was penning his report — 
to prevail upon the Indians to go back and search for Jenny's body, 
left behind in their hurried flight. 

The entire matter, however, seems to be placed beyond all doubt, 
not only by the corroborative statement of the " Wyandotte Panther," 
when brought into the presence of Burgoyne — to the effect that it was 
not he, but the enemy that had killed her — but by the statement of 
General Morgan Lewis, afterward Governor of New York State. His 
account is thus given by the late Judge William Hay in the following 
letter to the writer, in 1866: 

" Several years after Mrs. Teasse had departed this — to her — event- 
ful life, I conversed (in the hearing of Mr. David Banks, at his law- 
book store in New York City) with Governor Lewis. Morgan Lewis 
then stated his distinct recollection that there were three gun-shot 
wounds upon Miss McCrea's corpse, which, on the day of her death, 
was, by direction of himself — and in fact, under his own personal 
supervision — removed, together with a subaltern's remains, from a 
hill near Fort Edward to the Three Mile Creek, where they were in- 
terred. The fact of the bullet wounds — of which I had not before 
heard, but which was consistent with Mrs. Teasse 's statement — was to 
me confirmation strong as proof from Holy Writ, that Jane McCrea 
had not been killed exclusively by Indians, who would have done that 
deed either with a tomahawk or scalping-knife, and would not, there- 
fore, (pardon the phrase in this connection) have wasted their ammu- 
nition. In that opinion. Governor Lewis, an experienced jurist — if 
not general — and familiar with the rules of evidence, concurred." 

This opinion of two eminent lawyers, as well as the statement of 
the Wyandot, receives, moreover, additional confirmation in the fact,, 
that when the remains of Jane McCrea, some years since, were disin- 
terred and removed to the old Fort Edward burial ground, and con- 
signed to Mrs. McNeal's grave. Dr. William S. Norton, a reputable 



PARTICULARS OF MISS McCREA'S DEATH. 193 

and highly intellig;ent practitioner of physic and stirg'ery, examined 
her skull and found no marks whatever of a cut or a gash. 

This fact, also, strongly confirms the opinion expressed at the time 
by General Eraser ' at the post-mortem camp examination, that Jane 
McCrea was accidentally killed, or rather unintentionally killed by 
American troops pursiiing- the Indians, and, as General Eraser said he 
had often witnessed, aiming too high, when the mark was on elevated 
ground, as had occurred at Bunker's (Breed's) Hill. 

It thus appears, first: that Jane McCrea was accidentally killed by 
the Americans, and secondly: that the American Loyalist. David 
Jones, did not send the Indians, much less the ferocious " Wyandot 
Panther," whom he abhorred and dreaded on their errand. 

Indeed, the falsity of this latter statement (which, by the way, Gen- 
eral Burgoyne never believed) is also susceptible of proof. The well 
established fact that Jones had sent Robert Ayers, (father-in-law of 
the late Mr. Ransom Cook, long a highly respected resident of Sara- 
toga Springs) with a letter to Miss Jane McCrea asking her to visit the 
British encampment and accompany its commander-in-chief, with his 
lady guests (Lady Harriet Acland and Mrs. General Riedesel) on an 
excusion to Lake George, ' clearly shows how the charge against Jones 
had crept into a Whig accusation concerning misconduct and mean- 
ness and the dialogue (also well authenticated) between two of her 
captors, in relation to the comparative value of a white squaw — esti- 
mated, as before stated, at a barrel of rum — and her scalp-lock, ac- 
counts, perhaps, for the story of the pretended proffered reward (a 
barrel of rum) alleged to have caused the quarrel among the Indians 
which resulted in the supposed catastrophe. All who had been ac- 
quainted with David Jones knew that he was incapable of such con- 
duct and so expressed themselves at the time. 

The rumor, also, which is slightly confirmed in Burgoyne 's letter to 
General Gates (quoted in this chapter further in advance) that Miss 
McCrea was on her way to an appointed marriage ceremony, origi- 
nated in Jones's admission that he had intended, on the arrival of his 
betrothed at Skenesborough, to solicit her consent to their immediate 
nuptials. Bat Jones explicitly denied having intimated such a desire, 

' Afterwards killed in the second Battle of .Saratoga, October 7, 1777. 

' Conversations of the author with the late Ransom Cook. 

[24] 



194 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

either in a letter to Miss McCrea or otherwise. "Siich," he added, 
" was without reference to my own sense of propriety, my dear Jenny's 
sensibilit}', that the indelicacy of this supposed proposal would, even 
under our peculiar circumstances have thwarted it. " The late Mr. Ben- 
son J. Lossing, the eminent and painstaking historian who visited Fort 
Edward while several of Jane McCrea's contemporaries were still alive, 
says " that Lieutenant Jones denied all knowledge of the matter and 
iitterly disclaimed any such intention as the sending of a letter to 
Jenny, or of an Indian escort to bring her to camp. He had no luotive 
for so doing, for the American army was even then retreating; a small 
guard only was at Fort Edward, and in a day or two the British would 
have full possession of that fort, when he could have a personal inter- 
view with her." 

Nevertheless, there is much probability that Jane received com- 
munications from her lover at intervals, especially after the British 
army left Skenesborough. The following original manuscript letter 
from Jones to Jenny bears out this view: 

" Skenesbord, July ii, 1777. 
' ' Dear Friend: I have ye opportunity to send you this by William Barnsy, 
hoping through Freel, it will come safe to hand. Since last writing ' Ty ' ' has been 
taken and we have had a battle, which no doubt yow have been informed of before 
this. Through God's mercy I escaped destruction, and am now well at this place, 
for which thanks to Him. The rebels cannot recover from the blow yt has been 
struck, and no doubt the war will soon end. Such should be the prayer of all of 
us. Dear Jenny, I do not forget you, though much there is to distract in these 
days, and hope I am remembered by you as formerly. In a few days we will 
march to Fort Edward, for which I am anxious, when I shall have the happiness to 
meet you, after long absence. I hear from Isaac Vaughn, who has just come in, 
that the people on the river are moving to Albany. I hope if your brother John 
goes, you will not go with him. but stay at Mrs. McNeil's, = to whom and Miss 
Hunter give my dutiful respects. There I will join you. My dear Jenny, these are 
sad times, but I think the war will end this year, as the rebels cannot hold out and 
will see their error. By the blessing of Providence I trust we shall pass many 
years together in peace. Shall write on every occasion that offers and hope to And 
you at Mrs. McNeil's. No more at present, but believe yours affectionately till 
death. " David Jones. "3 

' Ticonderoga. 

^ Jones spells the name McNeil, while Judge Hay McNeal. 

3 No one can peruse this beautiful letter without being convinced that Lieutenant Jones was 
a person both of education and culture. It will compare well with any written by cultured peo- 
ple at the present day. For purposes of comparison read the "Orders," of the Capts., etc., 
given in this history, when the above remark will be apparent. 



SUBSEQUENT LIFE OF LIEUTENANT JONES. 195 

Indeed, this question regarding- Jones's sending for his betrothed, 
was often a topic of conversation between General Eraser and his 
cotisin, Mrs. McNeal, who, with Miss Hunter (afterwards Mrs. Teasse) 
accompanied h'im from Fort Edward to Saratoga, and on his death, in 
that battle, returned to Fort Edward, after witnessing the surrender 
of the British general. Jones frankly admitted to his friends that in 
consequence of the proximity of the savages to Fort Edward, he had 
engaged several chiefs, who had been at the Boiiquet Encampmicnt, to 
keep an eye upon the fierce Ottav/as and especially upon the blood- 
thirsty Wyandotts and persuade them not to cross the Hudson ; but if 
they could not be deterred from so doing, by intimations of danger 
from rebel scouts, his employes were to watch over the safety of his 
mother's residence, and also that of Colonel McCrea. For all which, 
and in order the better to secure their fidelity, Jones promised a suit- 
able but not specified reward, meaning thereby, such trinkets and 
weapons as were fitted for Indian traffic, and usually bestowed upon 
savages, whether in peace or in war. 

But partisanship was then extremely bitter and eagerly seized the 
opportunity thus presented of magnifying a slight and false rumor 
into a veritable fact, which was used inost successfully in stirring up 
the embers — which otherwise would have smouldered — of hatred 
against Loyalists in general, and the family of Jones in particular. 
The experience of the last few years afford fresh illustration of how 
little of partisan asseveration is reliable ; and there is so much of the 
really terrible in civil war which is indisputably true, that it is not 
difficult, nor does it require habitual credulity, to give currency to 
falsehood. 

One who, a hundred years hence, should write a history of the late 
Civil War, based upon the thousand rumors, newspaper correspon- 
dence, statements of radical and fierce politicians on one or the other 
side, would run great risk of making serious mistatements. The more 
private documents are brought to light, the more clearly they reveal 
a similar, though even niore intensified state of feeling between the 
Tories and the Whigs during the era of the Revolution. Great caution 
should, therefore, be observed, when incorporating into history any 
accounts as facts, which seem to have been the result of personal 
hatred or malice. 

As might naturally be expected, the death of Miss McCrea 



196 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

brought forth a correspondence between General Gates and General 
Burgoyne. In General Gates' letter he thus wrote to Burgoyne. 

" * * * That the savages of America should, in their unhappy 
warfare, mangle and scalp the unhappy prisoners who" fall into their 
hands, is neither new nor extraordinar}', but that the famous Lieuten- 
ant-General Burgoyne, in whom the fine gentleman is united with the 
soldier and the scholar, ' should hire the savages of America- to scalp 
Europeans and the descendants of Europeans — nay more, that he 
should pay a price for every scalp so barbarously taken, is more than 
will be believed in Europe, until authenticated facts shall, in every 
gazette, confirm the truth of the horrid tale. 

'' Miss McCrea, a young lady lovely to the sight, of virtuous charac- 
ter and amiable disposition, engaged to an officer of your army, was, 
with other women and children, taken out of a house near Fort Ed- 
Avard, carried into the woods and then scalped and mangled in a most 
shocking manner. Two parents, with their six children, were all 
treated with the same inhumanity, while quietly resting in their once 
happy and peaceful dwelling. - The miserable fate of Miss McCrea 
was particularly aggravated by her being dressed to receive her prom- 
ised husband, but met her murderers employed by you. Upwards of 
one hundred men, women and children have perished b}^ the hands of 
the ruffians to whom, it is asserted, you have paid the price of blood." 

To this latter portion of Gate's letter, Burgoyne lost no time in 
replying as follows : 

" * * * I have hesitated. Sir, upon answering the other para- 
graphs of your letter. I disdain to justify myself against the rhapso- 
dies of fiction and calumny, which, from the first of this contest, it has 
been an unvaried American policy to propagate, but which no longer 
imposes on the world. I am induced to deviate from this general rule, 
in the present instance, lest my silence should be construed as an 
acknowledgment of the truth of your allegations, and a pretense be 
thence taken for exercising future barbarities by the American troops. 

" By this motive, and upon this onl}', I condescend to inform you. 



' To explain this allusion, it should be remembered that Burgoyne had already-, aside from 
his military fame, greatly distinguished himself by a number of plays, which were spoken of 
highly by literary critics. Through the courtesy of Fontblanque, Editor of Burgoyne's literary 
edition of his works, I haye now in my possession part of the J\/S. play of "The Lady of the 
Manor" in his own hand-writing. 

^ This allusion is doubtless to the massacre of the Allen Family for which account see anU. 



BURGOYNE'S LETTER ABOUT McCREA TRAGEDY. 197 

that I would not be conscious of the acts you presume to impute to 
me, for the whole continent of America, though the wealth of worlds 
was in its bowels and a paradise upon its surface. 

" It has happened that all my transactions with the Indian Nations, 
last year and this, have been clearly heard, accurately minuted, by 
very numerous and in many parts very unprejudiced persons. So 
immediately opposite is your assertion that I have paid a price for 
scalps, that one of the first regulations established by me at the great 
council in May, and repeated and enforced and invariably adhered to 
since, was that the Indians should receive compensation for prisoners, 
because it would prevent cruelty, and that not only such compensation 
should be withheld, but a strict account demanded for scalps. These 
pledges of conquest, for such you well know they will esteem them, 
were solemnly and peremptorily to be taken from the wounded and 
even the dying, and the persons of aged men, women, children and 
prisoners, were pronounced sacred, even in an assault. 

' ' In regard to Miss McCrea, her fall wanted not the tragic display 
you have labored to give it, to make it as sincerely abhorred and la- 
mented by me, as it can be by the tenderest of her friends. The fact 
was no premeditated barbarity. On the contrary, two chiefs who had 
brought her off for the purpose of security, not of violence to her per- 
son, disputed which should be her guard, and, in a fit of savage pas- 
sion in one, from whose hands she was snatched, the unhappy woman 
became a victim. Upon the first intelligence of this event, I obliged 
the Indians to deliver the murderer into my hands ; and though to 
have punished him by our laws or principles of justice, would have 
been, perhaps, unprecedented, he certainly should have suffered an 
ignominious death, had I not been convinced froin my circumstances 
and observation, beyond the possibility of a doubt, that a pardon, 
under the terms which I presented, would be more efficacious than an 
execution, to prevent similar mischiefs. 

The above instance excepted, your intelligence respecting the 
cruelty of the Indians is false. ' 

Indeed, look at it as one may, the whole occurrence was dark and 
dreadful, and Burgoyne in this letter to Gates, retreated behind a false 
assertion, to escape the perils which were sure to grow out of an ad- 
mission of even one-half the truth of Gates's letter. That letter, how- 

' Burgoyne. evidently, at the time of writing this letter, had not heard of the massacre of the 
Allen and Barnes families. 



198 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ever, as Sparks justly remarks, was "more ornate than forcible and 
abounded more in bad taste than in simplicity and pathos, yet it was 
suited to the public feelings of the moment and as might be surmised, 
produced a lively impression in every part of America." Burke, in 
the exercise of all his glowing eloquence, used the story with most 
powerful effect in the British House of Commons, and made the 
dreadful and harrowing tale a household word throughout all Europe. 
In confirmation of what Burgoyne did on the occasion, as outlined 
in his letter to General Gates, is the following extract from the testi- 
mony of the Earl of Harrington, who was a witness before the com- 
mittee of the British House of Commons, during its inquiry into the 
failure of the Burgoyne Campaign, at London in 1779. ' 

'"Question. Does your Lordship remember General Burgoyne's receiving at 
Fort Anne the news of the murder of Miss McCrea ? 

" Answer, I do. 

" O. Did General Burgoyne repair immediately to the Indian camp and call 
them to council, assisted by Brig. General Fraser ? 

'" A. He did. 

' ' Q- What passed at that council ? 

'A. General Burgoyne threatened the culprit with death, insised that he 
should be delivered up and there were many gentlemen in the army and I own I 
Avas one of the number who feared he would put that threat in execution. 

Motives of policy, I believe, alone prevented him from it, and if he 
had not pardoned the man, which he did, I believe the total desertion 
of the Indians would have ensued and the consequences, on their 
return through Canada, might have been dreadful, not to speak of the 
weight they would have thrown into the opposite scale had they gone 
over to the enemy, which I rather imagine would have been the case. 

" ^. Do you remember Gen. Burgoyne's restraining the Indian parties from 
going out without a British officer or proper conductor, who were to be responsible 
for their behaviour ? 

"^. I do. 

'' Q. Do you remember Mr. St. Luc's reporting discontent among the Indians 
soon after our arrival at Fort Edward ? 

"^. I do. 

" Q- How long was that after enforcing the restraints above mentioned ? 

''A. I can't exactly say. I should imagine about three weeks or a month. 

' In justice, however, to General Burgoyne, it should be stated, that this investigation was 
instituted entirely at his own request. Although its results were nugatory, yet, that Burgoyne 
was really reinstated in public estimation is fully shown by the fact that soon after he was ap- 
pointed by the Crown, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. 



MISS McCREA'S MURDERERS ESCAPE. 199 

' ' Q. Does your lordship recollect Gen. Burgoyne's telling Mr. St. Luc that he 
had rather lose every Indian than connive at their enormities, or using language to 
that effect ? 

"^. I do. 

" Q. Does 3'oiir lordship remember what passed in counsel with the Indians at 
Fort Edward ? 

"A. To the best of my recollection, much the same exhortation to act with 
humanity, and much the same rewards were offered for saving their prisoners. 

" Q. Do you recollect the circumstance of the Indians desiring to return home 
at that time ? 

"A. I do, perfecth' well. 

" Q- 1^^" 3'ou remember that many quitted the army without leave ? 

''A. I do, immediately after the council and the next morning. 

" Q. Was it not the general opinion that the desertion of the Indians, then 
and afterwards, was caused by the restraint upon their cruelties and habits of 
plunder ? 

''A. It was. 

This testimony, it should be remembered, was given by the Earl 
only two years after the death of Jane McCrea, and the matter could 
not have been otherwise than fresh in his mind. 

Again, in another part of Burgoyne's testimony, when questioned 
about his proclamation at Putnam's Creek, to the people of Washing- 
ton County, in which he threatened the direst penalties to those who 
did not at once surrender and come in under his protection, he said: 
" I have spoken daggers, but used none! " 

And once more, in justification of Burg03me's course, Sergeant 
Lamb in his " Journal of Occurrences" — from which I have already 
quoted in narrating the Battle of Fort Anne — says: " Had the exectt- 
tion [ i. e. of the scalper of Jane McCrea ] taken place, there is every 
probability that the Indians would have retired from the army, massa- 
creing everybody and destroying everything before them ; thus it 
would have caused the destruction of hundreds of the innocent inhab- 
itants, not only in the vicinity [meaning by that the settlers of Wash- 
ington Count}^] but of those on the frontiers of Canada, if the assassin 
had been put to death. When the murder of Miss McCrea had reached 
the Generars ears, he went to the Indian camp and insisted in the 
most determined language that the culprit should be given up to jus- 
tice, and had it not been for the remonstrances of Monsieur St. Luc 
de le Come, a Frenchman, who then 'presided over them, the mur- 
derer's execution would not have been deferred another da}'. vSt. Luc 
also informed the General that great discontent had reigned among 



200 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the Indians, at the restraint under which they were kept. To which 
General Burgoyne replied : ' ' That he had rather lose every Indian in 
his army than connive at their enormities." 

The General afterwards said, " That he ever esteemed the Indian 
alliances, at best a necessar}^ evil, their services to be over valued; 
sometimes insignificant, often barbarous, always capricious, and that 
the employment of them was only justifiable when, by being united 
to a regular army, they could be kept under control. Governed by 
these sentiments the General acted. In his own expressive language, 
' he determined to be the soldier, not the executioner of the state. ' 
Indeed, it was very remarkable how he restrained their ferocity dur- 
ing the short time they were with our army, and in order to do this, 
the iTiore effectually he took to his aid a favorite priest of theirs, who 
had more control over the passions of the Indians than all their chiefs 
put together." 

On the 2 2d of April, 1822, the reiuains of Jane McCrea and of 
Lieutenant Van Vechten were removed to the old burial ground near 
the site of the present village of Fort Edward. The cereiuonial was 
attended with unusual pomp and display for those early days — the 
celebrated and afterwards unfortunate pulpit orator. Hooper Cum- 
mings of Albany, N. Y., (whose lamp was so soon to go out in black 
darkness) preaching upon that occasion from Michah 2-10, so impres- 
sive and pathetic a sermon that many of his audience were convulsed 
with sobs and weeping. 

Miss McCrea's remains were again removed in 1852, to the Union 
Cemetery between Fort Edward and Sandy Hill, the McCrea lot 
being near the entrance. The marble slab which marks the spot bears 
the following inscription : 

Here Rest the Remains of 

JANE McCREA, 

Aged 17. 

made captive and murdered 

by a band of indians 

while on a visit to a relative in 

this neighborhood 

A; D. 1777. 

TO COMMEMORATE 
ONE OF THE MOST THRILLING INCIDENTS 



GRAVE OF JANE McCREA. 201 

IN THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 

TO DO JUSTICE TO THE FAME OF THE GALLANT 

liRlITSH OFFICER TO WHOM SHE WAS AFFIANCED 

AND AS A SIMPLE TRIBUTE TO THE 

MEMORY OF THE DEPARTED 

THIS STONE IS ERECTED 

BY HER NEICE, 

SARAH HANNA PAYNE, 
A. D. 1852. 

"There is at present,'" (1895) writes tome the late Mrs. Charles 
Stone of Sandy Hill, who, with most praiseworthy interest, had taken 
a deep interest in the matter, " a chain fence with stone posts around 
the lot. The marble slab bears the coat-of-arms of the relic-hunter, 
being nicked at every point, except, possibly, beneath the soil. The 
whole, indeed, has the appearance of great neglect. There is, how- 
ever, a fund now being raised to put it in much better condition, and 
it is the intention of the trustees of the cemetery to have the improve- 
ments made this spring. They wish to erect a substantial fence, 
ornamental, of iron, but to be kept impenetrable from the chisel of 
the relic hunter. * * * ^ certain portion of the ftmd will be kept 
in trust continually to improve, adorn and keep in order the lot." ' 

A sketch of the Jane McCrea tragedy would be incomplete without 
an account of the after career of Jenny's lover, David Jones, especially 
since so much fiction has been woven into his life, after the terrible 
death of his betrothed. It seems incumbent, therefore, that the 
writer should present such reliable facts about him, as he has been 
able to glean from different sources. The facts then appear to be as 
follows : 

' The late Miss Lura A. Boies has written an exquisite little gem of a poem on Jane ilcCrea. 
My friend, Judge Hay thought, and I agree with him, that it would compare with any efforts of 
our best poets. Lura A. Boies, daughter of Jerome and Hannah G. Gillette Boies, was born in 
the town of Moreau, Saratoga County, N. Y., May 2d, 1835. Like the Davidson sisters (Lucretia 
and Margaret) she, at a very early age, developed precocious intellectual abilities, which her 
pen shaped from ' Airy Nothings' and formed 'a local habitation and a name.' Devoting the 
leisure hours of a busy life to literary pursuits, she, while yet in mere girlhood, accumulated the 
materials for a graceful volume of poems, which, after her early and untimely death, were, 
through the indefatigable efforts of her life-long friend, the late Judge Hay of Saratoga Springs, 
published under the title of "Rural Rhymes." She died April 15, 1859, ^nd is buried near her 
heroine, Jane McCrea, in the Union cemetery, between Fort Edward and Sandy Hill. The 
curious reader is referred for Miss Boies' exquisite poem on Jane McCrea to the author's " Bal- 
lads of Burgovne's Campaign." 

[25] 



202 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Lieutenant Jones, chilled with horror and completely broken in 
spirit by the event, tendered the resignation of his commission to 
Burgoyne, which was refused. He bought the scalp of his Jenny and 
with this cherished mememto, deserted, with his brother, before the 
army reached Saratoga and retired into Canada. Various accounts, 
as I have said, have been given respecting his subsequent fate. Some 
have asserted that, perfectly desperate and careless of life, he rushed 
into the thickest of the Battle of Bemis Heights and was slain ; while 
others allege that he died within three years afterward broken-hearted 
and insane. But neither assertion is correct. " While searching for 

Mrs. F n among her friends of Glens Falls." says my friend Mr. 

Lossing, "I called at the house of Judge R s, [Rosekrans?] 

whose wife is related to the family of Jones. Her aunt married a 
brother of Lieutenant Jones and she often heard this lady speak of 
him. He lived in Canada to be an old man and died but a few years 
ago. [This was written in 1848]. The death of Jenny, was a heavy 
blow and he never recovered from it. In youth he was gay and ex- 
ceedingly garrulous, but after that terrible event he became melan- 
choly and taciturn. He never married and avoided society as much 
as business would permit. Towards the close of July in every year, 
when the anniversary of the traged}' approached, he would shut him- 
self in his room and refuse the sight of any one; and, at all times his 
friends avoided any reference to the Revolution in his presence." 

As supplementary to, and corroborative of, this statement of Mr. 
Lossing, I have been so fortunate as to light upon a communication 
in The Catholic World of December, 1882, which gives the final 
end of Jones, and which is from the pen of Julia C. Smalley. She 
writes as follows: 

" In the course of an evening conversation with the cheerful circle 
in which an easy-chair is permitted to fill the privileged place accorded 
to its invalid occupant, we fell to relating incidents connected with 
the early history of our Republic. An aged member of that circle sat 
diligently plying her knitting needles, a silent listener to our chat, 
instead of supplying the share which we knew full well she could have 
drawn from her own knowledge of many interesting events of that 
period, at the time of their occurrence or soon after. She was, there- 
fore, very warmly urged by the younger part of the company to " tell 
us a story," even though it might prove, as she hinted, but a " twice 
told tale," to some of her listeners. 



REMINISCENSES RELATIVE TO LIEUT. JONES. 203 

It so happened that she had, on that day, taken up a stray number 
of Lossing's "Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution," and while 
<(lancing- drowsily over its pa^es, her eye was attracted by his account 
of the tragical death of Jane McCrea, near Fort Edward on the Hudson 
River in July, 1777. Having frequently in former years visited an 
aged relative who lived in Bennington, Vermont, through the War of 
the Revolution, and who was well acquainted with the unfortunate 
maiden and with the Mrs. McNeil whom Miss McCrea was visiting at 
the time of the sad event, she had heard the painful story in all the 
mournful details from the lips of that relative, with the shuddering 
horror and tearful sympathy which it would naturally awaken in a 
sensitive young heart. 

It is curious to note how some such trivial cause as this renewal of 
her acquaintance with that sad story will often impel an old person to 
rake up the dj'ing embers of the past and draw from them living 
sparks which had long been smouldering beneath their dust. It was 
thus with our serene old friend as she closed the book that afternoon 
and settled back in her old arm-chair, musing upon the narrative and 
recalling scenes of her early life which she had not thought upon for 
years. Hence it followed, of course, when our evening chat dipped 
into history and she was urged to bear her part in it, that she should 
recur to the subject of her late reading and revery, and to the fact 
that she knew more of the later life of Lieutenant David Jones than 
was recorded by Lossing. "For," said she, "all the early years of 
my life, with the exception of occasional visits to friends in Vermont, 
were passed on the American shore of the St. Lawrence. It was then 
a wilderness from Sackett's Harbor to the " Rapids," only broken by 
the little village of Ogdensburgh, just starting into existence, and by 
small openings made here and there by such hardy pioneers as dared 
encroach within its forbidding boundaries. Schools there were none 
up or down the river from Ogdensburgh, and the children of the set- 
tlers had no means for instruction, unless taught at home or sent 
across the river to attend schools in the older settlements on the Can- 
adian shore. 

" No sooner had my father taken up a large tract of land and 
planted our pleasant home in this wilderness — indeed, before we had 
been there long enough to get it reduced to a tolerable state of order, 
we were visited by the residents of that shore up and down the river, 
and afterwards formed many prominent friendshi])s with them, among 



204 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the most highl}' valued of whieh were members of the Jones's family. 
So it befel that when I was old enough to be sent away to school I was 
admitted into one of those families more as a household pet than a 
boarder and was cordially invited to range freely through the whole 
circle: As every separate family was blessed with daughters near my 
own age, I was decidedly •' in clover " among them — clover the luxury 
of which for me who had no sister or young companions at home, save 
the little squaws from a neighboring Indian encampment, cannot pos- 
sibly be conceived by any smiall lassie who lives amid abounding 
youthful companionship. I reveled in it. Such parties as were given 
weekly at one and another house ! Such multitudes of dolls as went 
with us in every variety of costume ; among which my own large and 
small, figured, copper-colored and in full Indian dress, with hair 
banged according to the most approved abojiginal style — which has 
been adopted by our modern fine ladies — and was necessary to the 
completion of the Indian toilet that I took pride in arranging for them 
in honor of my special pets, the papooses of the wigwams. 

"Among the young girls of the Jones's connection was one to 
whom I was particularly attracted as she was to me, by the similarity 
of our positions. Her father lived in a remote district and her home 
was as isolated as my own, while she was with her relatives for the 
same purpose as myself. At the close of each term of our school she 
was, as well as myself, carried home to pass the short interval between 
the terms. On one of these occasions she was so urgent in her en- 
treaties that I might be permitted to go with her for the vacation that 
my father consented, much to my satisfaction, and we set forth in 
great glee. Our journey was very delightful, through a wild and 
romantic region, and I received a most cordial welcome from her fam- 
ily at its close. 

" The house was more elaborate in style and furniture than our 
house so recently founded in the woods. A portion of it was built by 
her grandfather many years before and extensive modern additions 
had been made by her father. Her grandfather had died the previous 
3^ear and his brother, a very venerable old gentleman, with hair as 
white as snow, lived in the family. I was deeply impressed by the 
countenance and manner of this grand-uncle of m}' friend. An ex- 
pression of unutterable sadness was stamped upon his noble features, 
and a gentle dignity — benign to the verge of pity — marked his whole 
bearing, even to the softened tones of his manly voice, especially when 



REMINISCENSES RELATIVE TO LIEUT. JONES. 205 

addressing the young- in the few slowly uttered but impressive words 
which he seldom exceeded when speaking to them. He was very 
fond of his grandniece, and silent and reserved as he was with others, 
he never tired of listening to her sprightl}' prattle. 

"As soon as I found a proper occasion I plied her with questions 
as to this interesting relative, whom she had never mentioned when 
telling me about her family. With all the eager pertinacity natural 
to small daughters of Eve, I drew from this reluctant witness that her 
grandfather. Captain Jonathan Jones and this gentleman, his brother 
— Lieutenant David Jones — were officers in Burgoyne's army during 
the first years of the Revolutionary War; that the Lieutenant was 
engaged to a beautiful young lady, whose brother was a staunch sup- 
porter of the American cause and opposed to her union with the Tory 
officer, and that she was killed and scalped b}- the Indians while going 
with a friend and escort to meet that officer in the British camp at 
Sandy Hill, ' not long before the surrender of Burgoyne. He was so 
crushed by the terrible blow and disgusted with the apathy of Bur- 
goyne in refusing to punish the miscreant who brought her scalp to 
the camp as a trophy, claiming the bount}^ offered for such prizes by 
the British commander, that Jie and his brother asked for a discharge 
and were refused, when they deserted — he having first rescued the 
precious relic of his beloved from the savages — - and retired to this 
Canadian wilderness, which he had never been known to leave except 
upon one mysterious occasion many years before. 

' ' She did not know the name of the lady so long and faithfully 
mourned, but when I asked her if this tragedy did not occur near Fort 
Edward on the Hudson, she remembered to have heard that place 
mentioned in connection with it. She said they were all forbidden to 
speak in his presence of American affairs or history, but she had once 
persuaded him to let her see the mournful relic so precious to him. 
She described to me the hair as the most beautiful she had ever seen, 
light auburn in color, soft and glossy as silk, perfecth^ even and a 
yard and a quarter in length. '' 

' A lapse of memory on the part of the elderly narrator, as Burg'oyne, it will be recalled, \vas 
then at Fort Anne. 

'^ This corroborates Mr. Lossing-'^i statetnent. See rt«^f— that Dayid Tones purchased Jenny's 
scalp from the Indian. 

'•' This statement, it will be noted, conflicts with Mrs. Teasse's statement that Jenny's hair 
was " dark as the rayen's winj<." This verj' different description, however, goes to prove the 
accuracy in the main, of this old lady's narrative— as. if it had been made up, she would have 
given It consistently with the publishc-d accounts to which, as Mrs. Smalley states, she had just 
had access. 



206 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

"Well, my dear A ," said I, ''it so happens that I know more 

about this sad affair than even yourself, who have always lived in the 
house with him. When my father and mother used to visit his eldest 
sister in Bennington, Vt., they took me with them at her special 
request; for being the only daughter of her favorite brother, she al- 
ways treated me with more tender affection than she showed to her 
other nieces. Her house, which she had long occupied, was one where 
the officers [British?] quartered at the Battle of Bennington and I 
remember the speechless awe with which I was wont to con over the 
names of these officers, recorded by themselves on the eve of the bat- 
tle upon a pane of glass in the window with a diamond in a ring be- 
longing to one of their number, who was killed in the conflict of the 
next day. ' 

" My aunt's memory was a store house of tales of those times and I 
never tired of listening to them. No sooner was one finished than I 
teased for another, until, I am sure, that the patience of the good 
dame must have been sorely tried. She knew this young lady, whose 
name was Jane McCrea, and also Mrs. McNeal, the Tory friend 
whom Miss McCrea was visiting at the time of their captvire by the 
Indians. " I little thought, when I cried over the doleful story, that 
the lover was still living — much less that I should ever see him." 

"A did not dare repeat to her venerable relative what I had 

told her, but she ventured to beg that I might be allowed to see the 
beautiful hair of his lost love. He was deaf to her entreaties, assur- 
ing her that she was the only one who had or would see it while he 
lived and that he wished to have it buried with him when he died. 

" After our return to school I drew from her some facts in relation 
to the ' mysterious journey ' she had mentioned he had once taken. 
' I do not know much about it, ' she said, ' I heard it from an old ser- 
vant woman of the fainily, who told me that many years before I was 
born a stranger came there one evening, who appeared to be a gentle- 
man's valet. He brought a fine-looking, intelligent young boy with 
him and enquired for my grandfather, Captain Jonathan Jones. 

' Writing with a diamond on panes of window-glass, seems to have been a favorite amuse- 
ment of the British officers. The "old Longfellow House" in Cambridge, Mass.. the headquar- 
ters of General Riedesel and his staff when they were there a.s prisoners, has his name " Riede- 
.sel " cut in one of the panes, and it is plainly to be deciphered at the present day. 

■■^ This use of the word ^^ cupinrcd." corroborates Judge Hay's version of the tragedy — i. e., 
that the two ladies were taken />risoners by the Indians and not as the result of a quarrel between 
two opposing parties. 



REMINISCENSES RELATIVE TO LIEUT. JONES. 207 

" The substance of my friend's account was that, after an interview 
of some length with her grandfather, his brother, the Lieutenant, was 
called in, and the three were together in the library during most of 
the night, discussing some very interesting matter connected with the 
boy. The butler had been ordered to prepare refreshments in the 
dining-room, and Robert, one of the waiter-boys — an urchin gifted 
with a larger amount of mischief and curiosit}' than his small frame 
could possibly enclose, insomuch that they were constantly overflow- 
ing to the annoyance of the whole household — was directed to remain 
within call to serve them when required. It was not in the nature of 
this valet that he should remain idle at his post during the long hours 
of the night, and his faculties were too much on the alert, as to the 
subject engaging his superiors, to yield to drowsiness; so. in perfect 
submission to his ruling instincts, he plied the key-hole diligently for 
such information as it might convey to his ear, when the parties be- 
came so excited as to raise their voices above the low tone to which 
most of their conversation was confined. He gathered from these 
snatches that Captain Jones was urgently entreated to perform some 
service for the bo}" which he was reluctant to undertake. He heard 
him exclaim vehemently: ' I will not be persuaded to receive under 
my roof the son of that detestable traitor, whose treason, although to 
an unrighteous cause, caused my dearest friend, one of the bravest 
and most noble officers in his Majesty's service, to be hung like a dog- 
by the vile rebels. I should be constantly haunted with the thought 
that I was nurturing a viper to sting me when occasion offered.' His 
brother David said something in reply, of which Robert heard only 
enough to infer that there was a retired officer of the American army 
across the river who might be persuaded to do what was desired. 
' Very well,' said Captain Jones, 'you can undertake the task, if you 
see fit, but I have no belief that you will gain the consent of one who 
loathes the father so bitterly to take charge of the son. ' Robert heard 
no more and soon after these remarks the confab broke up and he was 
called to serve the refreshments in the library. * * * 

" Lieutenant David Jones departed with the boy the next day. He 
was absent about a week and nothing further was known as to his 
journey, its object and result, than was gathered from Robert's story, 
which was soon circulated throughout the neighborhood. 

" * * * I afterwards learned that at the period to which this 
account of my young friend referred, a settlement was rapidly form- 



208 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ing on the American shore of the St. Lawrence, opposite a Canadian 
village and that the fact that a leading man in the community and 
retired officer of the American Revolution had adopted a boy whose 
origin was unknown, but who bore the name of a traitor. This lad 
afterward grew up to manhood and became an enterprising, respecta- 
ble citizen and a distinguished officer in the volunteer service in the 
War of 1812. 

"The mystery, however, surrounding the retired American officer, 
the problem of the suspected relationship of the boy to Arnold, the 
notorious American traitor were never solved. 

" It continued for many years to be the subject of evening gossip 
by rural firesides in that region and strange stories were told by In- 
dian and white hunters and trappers of the startling things they had 
heard and seen in the vicinity of the officers's lonely cottage — long 
since fallen into decay — both during the occupancy of the owner and 
after his disappearance. Whether he died there or left for some far- 
off country before his death, was never known. ' " 

As might naturally be supposed, many ballads were written upon 
the tragic death of the unfortunate maiden, which, at the time and 



1 " Previous to the Revolution," says Wilson in his Life of Jane McGrea. " there was, perhaps, 
no family settled on the upper waters of the Hudson, who exerted greater influence or held 
more extensive possessions than the Joneses. Their landed estates included a section upon 
which large and thriving villages have since arisen and which, in the progress of time, has 
become of almost inestimable value. The fortunes of the war drove them from their inheri- 
tance. Their broad lands were confiscated, and among the later generations that have dwelt 
upon them, but few probably have known aught of the history of their ancient owners. After 
the lapse of seventy-five years [this was written in 1853], however, recent developments seem to 
indicate that the name of the old proprietors is about to become closely connected with the title 
of the soil. One of their descendants, David Jones [of the same name as his ancestor, the lover 
of Jane McCrea] appeared before the New York Legislature of 1853, and presented a memorial 
to that body, wherein he claimed legal title to the forfeited estate of his ancestor. The claim 
rests upon the ground that the judgment of confiscation was not rendered until after tho Treaty 
of Peace was signed between Great Britain and the United States. And inasmuch as, by the 
terms of that Treaty, it was agreed there should be no future confiscations by reason of the part 
any person might have taken in the war, it is insisted by the claimant that the judgment ren- 
dered subsequently, is void, and that he is sustained in that position by decisions of both the 
State and Federal courts. The memorial was referred to the Attorney-General for his opinion, 
who afterwards submitted to the consideration of the Legi.slature a report favorable to the 
claim." 

On the walls of the Saratoga monument, erected by the "Saratoga Monument Association," 
there is a tablet in bronze in alto relievo, two-thirds the size of life, representing the death of 
Jane McCrea. She is there shown falling off her horse, after receiving the accidental though 
fatal shot from her American pursuers. 

In closing this sketch some critical reader may say that its concluding paragraphs are 
somewhat irrelevant. My excuse, however, for giving these facts, is, that as David Jones was 
such a prominent character for many years among the traditions of the early settlers of Wash- 
ington County, anything relating to his after career, should not be without very special interest. 



LINES ON THE DEATH OF JANE McCREA. 209 

afterward, had an extensive circulation both in this country and in 
Europe. Among them all we cull the following. It was written for 
and published in the Saratoga Sentinel at the date given at the bottom 
of the poem, and while the author is unknown, yet I think from the 
internal evidence, that it was by my friend the late Judge William 
Hay of Saratoga Springs. This, however, is a mere matter of con- 
jecture. 

REFLECTIONS AT THE GRAVE OF JANE McCREA. 

"And thus it is, 
The bright and beautiful and wise, 
The puling youngster and the gray-haired sage, 
Manhood and youth, and infancy and age. 
Alike yield up their struggling, passing breath — 
Alike are subject to the grim fiend Death. 

" Alike, yet not alike. 
For I wist not, that it is death to strike 
The sudden blow, beneath some summer flower, 
And then transplant it into soil more pure, 
That it may waste its fragrant sweetness where 
More rare exotics bloom and scent the air. 

" A lonely mound. 
But marked from those that's gathered round. 

By slab unstoned all, and neither tells 

The name, nor worth, nor fame of her that dwell 

Beneath the sod, within the grave's dark gloom. 
Our last sought resting-place and common doom. 

' ' She fell by hands 
Of savage violence — the gleaming brands 
Of war were gathered far and near around, 
And seeking love she fell — the lover found 
Was Death, and in one long embrace. 
With icy lips, he pressed her marble face. " 

FoKi' Edwakd, N. Y., Nov. 5, 1S42. 

Yet, amid these scenes of desolation and affright, there was one 
woman whose proud spirit was undaunted. It was the wife of General 
Philip Schuyler. The General's coimtry seat was upon his estate at 

■ [ 26 ] 



210 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Saratoga (now Schuylerville, N. Y.) standing at the confluence of 
Fish Creek — the outlet of Saratoga Lake — with the Hudson. On the 
approach of Burgoyne, Mrs. Schuyler went up to Saratoga from Al- 
bany, in order to remove her furniture. Her carriage was attended 
by only a single armed man on horseback. When within two miles 
of her house, she encountered a crowd of panic-stricken people, who 
recited to her the recent tragic fate of Jane McCrea, and at the same 
time representing the danger of proceeding further in the face of the 
enemy, urged her to return. She had yet to pass through a dense 
forest, within which even then some of the savage foe might be lurk- 
ing for prey. But to these prudential counsels she would give no 
heed. " The General's wife," she exclaimed, " must not be afraid," 
and pushing forward, she accomplished her purpose. ' 

Before the mansion was evacuated, however, the General, himself, 
had a narrow escape from assassination by the hand of a savage, who 
had hidden himself within the house for that special purpose. It was 
at the hour of bed-time and while the General was preparing to retire 
for the night, that a female servant, in coming in from the hall, saw 
a gleam of light reflected from the blade of a knife, in the hand of 
some person whose dark outline she discerned behind the door. The 
servant was a black slave, who had sufficient presence of mind not to 
appear to have made the discovery. Passing directly through the 
door into the apartment where the General was yet standing near the 
fire-place, with an air of unconcern she pretended to arrange such 
articles as were disposed upon the mantle-piece, while, in an under- 
tone she informed her master of her discovery and said aloud, "I 
will call the guard. " The General instantly secured his arms, while 
the faithful servant hurried out by another door into a long hall, 
upon the floor of which lay a loose board which creaked beneath the 
tread. By the noise she made in trampling rapidly upon the board, 
the Indian — for such he proved — being thus led to suppose that the 
" Philistines were upon him," in numbers, sprang from his conceal-, 
ment and fled. He was pursued, however, by the guard and a few 
friendly Indians attached to the person of General Schuyler, overtaken 
and made prisoner. Exasperated at his treachery, the friendly In- 
dians were resolved to put him to death, and it was with much diffi- 
culty that they were diverted from their purpose by the General. 

' This incident was told, my father, the late Colonel William L. Stone, bj' the late Mrs. James. 
Cochran of Oswego, N. Y., who was the youngest daughter of General Schuyler. 



SCHUYLER DELAYS BURGOYNE. 211 

The effect of these incidents detailed in this chapter as well as other 
recitals of savage cruelties, not all, as General Biirgoyne represented 
without foundation, was extensive and powerful. The crj' of ven- 
geance was universal and a spirit was aroused throughout the Colon- 
ies, especialh' in that of New York, which proved of speedy and great 
advantao'c to the American arms. 



CHAPTER XVI 



1777- 

BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN CONTINUED. 

ScHuvi.KR Del.ws the M.\rch of Burgoyne — The Battle ok Benningtun and Its 
Direct Re.sult in the Defe.'VT of Burgoyne — Comments on it — Sergeant Lamu's 
Journal of His Trip Through the Wilderness from Fort Miller to Ticonder- 
OG.A — Anecdotes and Incidents While Burgoyne was at Fort Miller — Con- 
sternation Produced Among the People of WashinctTon County' on the Ap- 
proach OF THE British Army. 

It will be remembered that we left General Burgoyne, at the close 
of the fourteenth chapter, at Fort Anne where he had arrived on the 
25th of Jul}-, after a terrible march along the banks of Wood Creek — 
owing to the wise foresight of Schuyler in the felling of trees and 
placing other obstacles in his path. Meanwhile, on Burgoyne's arri- 
val at Fort Anne, Schuyler had fallen back from his position at Fort 
Edward to Moses Creek, four miles below that post, because it was a 
better and much inore defensible position. Fort Edward was really 
no position at all. Nevertheless, many of his fellow citizens who, 
like the would be military critics of our own day. blamed him greatly 
for its abandonment. Because it bore the title of "Fort" they 
thought it must be one ; and 3-et it was a defensive work in nothing 
but the name. Indeed, if " Old Ty," after the millions expended on 
it was nothing but " a trap," Fort Edward, neglected, almost in ruins, 
nestled in a little valley and commanded on all sides, was a delusion 
and a snare. That experienced soldier, the Marquis de Chastellux, it 
will be remembered in my sketch of Fort Edward, is quoted as repre- 



212 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

senting- the Fort at the time of his visit as utterly indefensible. ' This 
charge, therefore, of the unnecessary abandonment of a miserable 
little earthwork when an army of 7,000 inen was advancing against it 
with an enormous park of artillery, is a sample of the unjust condem- 
nations heaped upon the judicious Schuyler." " 

From his camp at Moses Creek, Schuyler wrote his famous letter, 
promising "to obstruct every mile of Burgoyne's advance" — a promise 
which was kept to the letter. He had already, as has been seen, 
caused Burgoyne the irreparable loss of five weeks, and the same 
causes, attributable to Schuyler's sagacity, kept Burgoyne two weeks 
longer at Fort Edward. Indeed, as Burgoyne afterwards admitted, 
" There is no doubt that I lingered too long at Fort Edward." 

As Burgoyne sluggishly made his way southward Schuyler fell back 
from Moses Creek (ever presenting a bold front to the enemy) to Sar- 
atoga on the 2ist of July. Thence, for excellent strategic reasons, he 
changed his position to Stillwater, about nine miles further south. 
He finally made his stand on Van Schaick's Island at the mouth of 
the Mohawk near its confluence with the Hudson (sometimes called 
" The Sprouts of the Mohawk ") where he threw up extensive earth- 
works on the right bank of the river, " some thirteen miles nearer 
Albany, which city again is nine miles south of Cohoes Falls. 

While his troops were posted at "Half Moon," which derives its 
name from the fact that Hendrick Hudson, with his Vlieboot (Half 
Moon) ascended to this point — the junction of the Mohawk with the 
" Great River of the North " — Schuyler's own headquarters continued 
to be at Stillwater, thirteen miles nearer to the enemy. Here he con- 
tinued imtil (as will be seen further on) he was superseded by Gates 
on the 19th of August. 

Meanwhile, the patriot inhabitants in the towns along the line of 
Burgoyne's march had nearly all fled before that General's advance 
with his Indian allies. The latter spread out on both flanks of his 
army and were but too ready to carry slaughter among the Whig 
families of Washington County. Even the Tory families, like the 
Aliens, as we have seen, were not safe when there was an opportunity 

' He -said, it will be recollected, that it could not have resisted four hundred men with four 
cannon. 

- (ieneral J. W. de Peyster. 

■' These earthworks may yet be distinctly seen by the traveller on the railroad train from 
Troy to Waterford, N. Y., just before the train crosses the river into that village. 



ABANDONMENT OF FARMS. 213 

afforded either for booty or scalps. The patriots also, in the southern 
part of the county, were equally dismayed. They were daily expect- 
ing the appearance of the Indians among them ; and an order issued 
by General Schuyler directing them to leave their farms and seek 
refuge in the interior was almost as disheartening. The harvest time 
was close at hand ; and what were they to live on if they abandoned 
their crops ? 

The count}' committee met at New Perth (Salem) on the 25th of 
July, John Rowan being chosen chairman. After declaring very un- 
gratefully, that " universal desolation had overspread the county, on 
accoimt of General Schuyler's order to abandon their farms" — though 
admitting that it was unsafe to remain — they appointed a committee 
as appraisers to estimate the value of their crops and buildings with a 
view of obtaining compensation in case thej^ were lost in obedience to 
the order. " Alas! " saj's Johnson, " both the national and state gov- 
ernments were unable to pay or feed their soldiers, much less to make 
good the loss of destroyed crops or burned buildings! " 

Schuyler's order was carried by Captain Joseph McCracken, and 
soon after his arrival it was resolved to build a fort at New Perth, 
which might serve as a refuge to the inhabitants from wandering- 
bands of red or white marauders. For this purpose, the old log 
church — the first one erected in the county and to which allusion has' 
already been made — was torn down and the logs set up in a stockade 
around a frame church which had been more recentl}^ erected. It was 
finished on the 26th of July, and received the name of " Salem Fort " 
— Captain McCracken being placed in command. "This was," says 
Johnson, "the first use of the name of Salem, so far as we can dis- 
cover, in the town which now bears that appellation." It was proba- 
bly derived from the town of Salem in Massachusetts — though it is 
possible " that some biblical scholar may have thought the Hebrew 
meaning of Salem — Peace — might properly be applied to a fortress 
made of two churches and intended to preserve peace to their homes." 
This explanation of the name, however, seems to me very far-fetched 
and not deserving of consideration. 

THE EXPEDITION TO JBENNINGTON. 

On General Burgoyne's arrival at Fort Anne, instead of advancing 
at once upon Fort Edward and thence to Saratoga, Stillwater and 



214 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Albany before Schuyler had had time to concentrate his forces in his 
front, he sent a detachment of Brunswickers, under Colonel Baum, 
by way of the Battenkill and thence southward throug-h the county to 
Bennington to surprise and capture some stores which he had heard 
w^ere at that place and of which he stood sorely in need. He was 
also influenced to this step by the advice of his friend, Major Skene, 
who assured him that large numbers of the yeomanry of the country 
would flock to his standard — an expectation which the event proved to 
be entirely fallacious. 

General Riedesel, who commanded the German allies, was totally 
opposed to this diversion; but, being overruled, he proposed that Baum 
should march in the rear of the enemy, by way of Castleton, toward 
the Connecticut river. ' Had this plan been adopted, the probability 
is that the Americans would not have had time to prevent Baum from 
falling unawares upon their rear. Burgoyne, however, against the 
advice of Riedesel and Philips, insisted obstinately upon his plan, 
which was, that Baum should cross the Battenkill opposite Saratoga, 
move south and parallel with the Connecticut river in a direct line to 
Bennington, destroy the magazine at that place and mount the Bruns- 
wick Dragoons, who were destined to form part of the expedition. '■' 
In this latter order a fatal bhnider was committed b}' employing 
troops, the most awkward and heavy, in an enterprise where every- 
thing depended on the greatest celerity of movement, while the ran- 
gers who were lighth' equipped were left behind ! 

Let us look for a moment at a fully equipped Brunswick Dragoon 
as he appeared at that time. He wore high and heavy jack-boots, 
with large, long spurs, stout and stiff leather breeches, gauntlets, 
reaching high up upon his arms, and a hat with a huge tuft of orna- 
mental feathers. ''" On his side he trailed a tremendous broad-sword, 
a short, but clumsy carbine was slung over his shoulder, while, down 
his back, like a Chinese mandarin, dangled a long queue. vSuch were 

' See my Li/e and Military foiirnals of Major-Ceneral Riedesel. 

''■ And yet General Riedesel states that 1,500 horses had been purchased in Canada, as early as 
the middle of June, for the army. What became of them ? Is it possible that the contractors of 
that day as well as our own, pocketed the money and failed to produce the horses ? 

^ The weight of one of these Brunswick Jack Boots was s 1-2 pounds or n pounds for the pair, 
and this only for the boots, to say nothing of the dragoon's other equipments One of these 
boots, worn by a man captured at Saratoga, is yet (igoo) preserved at Washington's Headquarters 
at Newburgh, N. Y. The man who wore this boot was captured at Saratoga. He travelled on 
foot with other prisoners ob his way to Kaston, Pa., as far as North Newburgh. where he e.K- 
changed his boots for a lighter pair. 



EXPEDITION TO BENNINGTON. 215 

the troops sent out by the British General, on a service requiring- the 
lightest of light skirmishers. The latter, however, did not err from 
ignorance. From the beginning of the campaign, the English officers 
had ridiculed these unwieldy troopers, who strolled about the camp 
with their heavy sabres dragging on the ground, saying (which was 
the fact) that the hat and sword of one of them were as heavv as the 
whole of an English private's equipment. But, as if this was not 
sufficient, these light dragoons were still further cumbered by being 
obliged to carry flour and drive a herd of cattle before them for their 
maintenance on the way. Could anything have been more fatuous? 

Baum left Fort Miller on the nth of August and encamped near 
old Fort Saraghtoga that night. When about to move the next morn- 
ing he received an order to wait for further instructions, and remained 
encamped through the day at the mouth of the Battenkill. The fol- 
lowing day, August 13, he set out on his imluck}" expedition. That' 
night he encamped near what is now called " Wait's Corners " in the 
town of Cambridge. His advance had a slight skirmish with a few 
militiamen, capturing eight of them. They were released the follow- 
ing morning at Colonel Skene's request, the latter having an idea that 
this action would have a good effect on the large number of those of 
the population who were supposed to be favorably inclined towards 
the cause of the King. 

Colonel Baum had been specially instructed to consult vSkene in 
everything relating to the treatment of the inhabitants, whom that 
personage was supposed to know all about, but whom he, as the re- 
sult proved, actually knew very little about. The fact is-, that Skene 
thought that two-thirds of the people were loyalists, whereas, espec- 
ially in the section traversed by Baum, hardly one in ten were so. On 
the 14th Baum's command proceeded southward through Cambridge, 
crossed the Hoosick into the present town of Rensselaer and followed 
up the valley of that stream and its tributary, the Walloomsac, 
toward Bennington. 

The result of these inefficient manoeuvres may be easily foreseen. 
By a rapid movement of the Americans under Stark, at three o'clock 
of the afternoon of the i6th of August, Baum was cut off from his 
English allies, who fled and left him to fight alone, with his awk- 
wardly equipped squad, an enemy far superior in numbers. In this 
manoeuver Stark was greatly aided by a ruse practiced on the German 
Colonel. "Toward nine o'clock on the mornins" of the i6th," writes 



216 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

General Riedesel, in giving an account of this action, "small bodies 
of armed men made their appearance from different directions. These 
men were inostly in their shirt-sleeves. They did not act as if they 
intended to inake an attack and Baum, being told by a Provincial who 
had joined his army on the line of march, that they were all Loyalists 
and would make common cause with him, suffered them to encamp 
on his sides and rear. This confidence, perhaps, was the first and 
chief false step which caused Baum's ultimate defeat. Shortly after- 
ward, another force of the ' Rebels ' arrived and attacked his rear, 
but with the aid of artillery, they were repulsed. After a little while 
a stronger body made their appearance and attacked more vigorously. 
This was the signal for the seeming Loyalists, who had encamped on 
the sides and rear of the army, to attack the Germans, and the result 
was that Baum suddenly found himself cut off from all his detached 
posts."' For over two hours he withstood the sallies and fire of the 
Americans — his dragoons to a man fighting like heroes — but at last, 
his ammunition giving out and the re-inforcements he had sent for 
not arriving, he was obliged to give way before superior numbers and 
retreat. "The enemy," to quote again from General Riedesel, than 
whom no better or more conscientious authority can be given, "seemed 
to spring out of the ground." Twice the dragoons succeeded in 
breaking a road through the forces of Stark, for, upon their ammu- 
nition being used up, Baum ordered that they should sling their car- 
bines on their shoulders and trust to their swords. But bravery was 
now in vain, the heroic leader, himself mortally wounded in the abdo- 
men by a bullet, and having lost three hundred and sixty out of four 
hundred men, was forced to surrender. Meanwhile, the Indians and 
Provincials had taken flight and sought safety in the forest. 

While these events were taking place Lieutenant-Colonel Brey- 
mann, who had been sent by Riedesel to the aid of Baum, reached 
the bridge of Sancoick at three o'clock in the afternoon. Here he was 
met by Major Skene, who assured him that he was only two miles 
distant from Lieutenant-Colonel Baum. Skene, however, not inform- 
ing him of the latter's defeat, he continued his march as quickly as 
possible, although his troops — the day being unusually hot and sultry 
— were greatly fatigued. But scarcely had he advanced fifteen hun- 

' I have only quoted a very small portion of Riedesel's account. If the reader wishes to read 
more of it, he is referred to my " Life and Times of General Riedesel," and my " Rurgoyne's Cam- 
paign." 



BREYMANN'S RETREAT. 217 

dred paces beyond the bridge, when he descried a strongly armed 
force on an eminence toward the west. Skene assured him this force 
were not the enemy, but Breymann, not satisfied with this assurance, 
sent ahead some scouts who were immediately received with a volley 
of musketry. Perceiving how the case stood, he at once ordered 
Major Barner to advance upon the hill, sent his grenadiers to the 
right, put the guns of both regiments into position and directed the 
fire upon a log-house occupied by the Americans. The Germans drove 
the enemy across three ridges of land, but their ammunition giving 
out, they were obliged to desist from the piu'suit. Thereupon, the 
Americans, guessing the cause of the halt, in their turn, once more 
advanced, upon which, Breymann, relying solely upon the fast gather- 
ing darkness to save himself, halted his men oppcisite the enemv and 
remained there until it was perfectly dark. Then, under cover of the 
night, he retreated across the bridge, but was forced to leave his can- 
non in the hands of the Americans. At twelve o'clock that same 
night, Breymann arrived with his tired troops at Cambridge, reaching 
the main army at Fort Miller on the 17th. Meanwhile, he had dis- 
patched messengers to Burgoyne, who. galloping through darkness 
and mud, reached that general with the news of l)oth battles at three 
o'clock on the morning of the 17th. Startled by these unexpected 
tidings of disaster and fearing lest Breymann, too, would be over- 
whelmed by an avalanche of New England riflemen — whom, not- 
withstanding his supercilious remark, ' he had already begun to fear — 
he consulted Riedesel as to the advisability of starting at once with 
his entire army to support the defeated detachment — at the same time 
sending off an officer to inform Colonel Breymann of his intention. 
But before he could put his design in operation, Riedesel had received 
news that Breymann had escaped and was within six miles of the Batten- 
kill, and the order was therefore countermanded. In the course of 
that day (the 17th) the wearied Brunswickers, covered with mud and 
almost dead with fatigue, marched disconsolately into the camp at 
Fort Miller while, hour after hour, the Dragoons, the Tories and the 
Indians came straggling in with their several tales of woe. 



• Reference is here made to Burjfoyne's remark in Parliament, before assuming thecnnimand 
in America, that " with soo . British troops he could march through all of the Colonies," 

[27] 



218 WASHINCrrON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In this action the Americans captured four V)rass cannon, ' besides, 
some hundred stand of arms and brass barrelled drums, several 
Brunswick swords and about seven hundred prisoners. "It is true,'" 
says Riedesel, in commenting upon this action, " that justice was done 
to the bravery of Colonel Baum, but the English also .said, that he did 
not possess the least knowledge of the country, its people, or its lan- 
guage. But ii'ho selected him for this expedition? " - 

I have dwelt on this battle at length, because the Battle of Ben- 
nington was one of those decisive conflicts which "fringe the border 
of Washington County with a red band of warlike wrath."' It was 
barely outside of the southern line of the present town of White 
Creek, in the valley of the Walloomac, that "the old Indian fighter, 
grim John Stark," having waited throughout the 15th for the rain to 
abate, on the morning of the i6th led his militia against the well 
trained and disciplined forces of Colonel Baum. His men v^'ere, it is- 
true, chiefly from New Hampshire, and there were, also, a considera- 
ble number from Vermont and Massachusetts, but many of them were 
from the towns of Cambridge, White Creek, Jackson and Salem in 
this county. 

In order, however, says Jennings, in his " Memoirs of a Century," 
to appreciate the valor of the Americans in the Bennington Battle, 
their general want of military experience and training must be con- 
sidered. When Stark ordered the cannon taken from Batim to the 
scene of action, upon the arrival of Breymann, the men whom he 
directed to load and fire knew not how to do it ; the general there- 
upon dismounted and taught them, by loading one of the pieces him- 
self. ' After the battle in all Stark's brigade there was but one ca.se 

' These beautiful brass pieces of artillery were destined t" undergo several of the vicissi- 
tudes of war. They are French cast and were brought from Quebec with the army of Burgoyne. 
Thev were afterwards inscribed "taken at Bennington, August i6, 1777." and constituted a part 
of the artillery of General Hull's army and fell into the enemy's hands at Detroit. When the 
British officer of the day ordered the evening salutes to be fired from the American cannon, he 
chanced to read the inscription, whereupon he .said that he would cause to be added, as an addi- 
tional line, "Retaken at Detroit, August 16, 1812." The guns were carried by the British down to 
Fort George at the mouth of the Niagara river, where they again fell into the hands of the Ameri- 
can army, which captured that fortress. Gen. Dearborn had them transported to Sackett's Har- 
bor and with them were fired the salutes in honor of Harrison's victory over Proctor at the river 
Thames, in Upper Canada. The guns are now in Washington. 

A beautiful monument erected under the auspices of the Bennington Monument .\ss(jciation- 
on the site of the Battle, commemorates the action. 

'■^ This, of course, was meant for a severe cut at Bui-goyne — and a just one. 

' Thatcher. 



IMPORTANCE OF vSUCCESS AT BENNINGTON. 219 

<->f amputatinj^- instruments. Doctor Henry Clark relates that a resi- 
dent of Bennin<>ton, who was a lad at the time of the battle, told him 
of the vivid impression made iipon his mind by seein!.>' the men hurry- 
ing past where he stood (he stood on the corner since occupied b}' Mr. 
Patchen's store) with scythes and axes, as well as muskets and fowl- 
ino- pieces to meet the enemy. 

vSome remarks of Mr. Everett in his life of vStark may appropriately 
be quoted on this point : 

" Too much praise cannt)t be bestowed on the conduct of those who 
gained the Battle of Bennington, oificers and men. It is, perhaps, 
the most conspicuous example of the performance by militia of all 
that is expected of regular veteran troops. The fortitude and resolu- 
tion with which the lines at Bunker Hill were maintained by recent 
recruits against the assaidt of a powerful army of experienced soldiers 
have always been regarded with admiration. But at Bennington the 
hardy yeomanry of New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts 
[when he speaks of Vermont, of course he refers to the people of 
Washington County, at least those residing east of the Hudson] many 
of them fresh from the plow and unused to the camp, ' advanced,' as 
(leneral Stark expresses it 'through fire and smoke and mounted 
breastworks that were well fortified with cannon.'" 

With the failure of this expedition against Bennington, the first 
lightning flashed from Burgoync's hitherto serene sky. The soldiers, 
as well as their oi^cers. had set out on this campaign with cheerful 
hearts for, the campaign brought to a close, all must end in the triumph 
of the Britisb arms. Even the ladies who accompanied the expedition 
— Mrs. (General Riedesel and Lady Harriet Acland and others — 
thought they were actually on a grand picnic and, as they plodded 
through the wilderness from Fort Edward to Fort Miller with their 
brilliantly \miformed escorts, they laughed and chattered in a right 
merry mood. ' "Britons never go back, " Burgoyne exultantly had 
said, as the flotilla passed up Lake Champlain. Now, however, the 
Indians deserted by scores and an almost general consternation and 
languor took the place of the former confidence and bouyancy. 

On his arrival at Fort Edward, which, as has been narrated, was 



' See iny " Life anil I.,etter.s of Mrs. (leneral Riedesel.'" One of the bronze tablets in the Sara- 
toga Monument at Schuylerville. N. Y., has a represention of this jjala march throujjh the wil- 
derness -the ladies and ofhcers talktiiK merrily together while carryin^i^ their lap-dokfs in their 
arms ! 



220 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HLSTORY. 

evacuated by Schuyler on the approach of the British army, the Eng;- 
lish General was joined by the Mohawk nation, or, as they were 
called, " vSir William Johnson's Indians." The celebrated Indian 
chieftain, Joseph Brant^Thayendanegea- — ^^also visited Burgoyne's 
camp at the same time, as a matter of courtesy, and tarried only a few 
days. The Mohawks agreed to fight, provided their women and chil- 
dren were sent to Canada, a condition which was faithfully carried 
out. 

It was while Burgoyne was at Fort Edward that his German ally. 
General Riedesel, was joined on the i8th of July by his wife, who had 
followed the army oh from Canada. In one of her letters to her 
mother she gives a delightful picture of her sojourn at Fort Edward 
at this time. " In the afternoon of the 14th of July, " she writes, "we 
seated ourselves in a calash ' at Fort George ahd reached Fort Edward 
on the same day. We led during the three weeks of our stay at this 
place, a very pleasant life. The surrounding country was magnifi- 
cent and we were encircled by the encampments of the English and 
German troops. W^e lived in a building called the ' Red HoUse.' ' I 
had only one room for m}' husband, myself and niy children, in which 
m}' husband also slept, and had besides aft 'his writing materials. My 
women servants slept in a kind of hall. When it was beautiful' 
weather we took our meals under the trees, but if not, in a barn, i\pon 



' Isaac Weld in his "Travels in Canada " ( 1795-7) gives the following description of a "Calash" 
which will be of interest to the reader. 'He writes as follows : 

" The calash is a carriage very generally used in Lower Canada. Indeed, there is scarcely a 
farmer in the country who does not possess one. It is a sort of one horse-chaise, capable of hold- 
ing two people besides the driver,, who sits on a kind of box placed over the footboard expressly 
for his accommodation. The body of the calash is hung upon broad straps of leather, round iron 
rollers that are placed behind by means of which they are shortened or lengthened. On each 
side of the carriage is a little door about two feet high, whereby you enter it, and which is useful 
when shut, in preventing anything from slipping out. The harness for the horse is always made 
in the old French taste, extremely heavy; it is studded with brass nails and to particular parts of 
it are attached small bells, of no use that I could ever discover but to annoy passengers." ■ 

-" The ' Red House " or Burgoyne's Headquarters, was built [as mentioned in a preceding 
note, out of the debris of the old fort] before the Revolution by Doctor lames Smyth, who fled to^ 
Canada, but, subsequently, sold the ' Red House" to Captain E7,ekiel Baldwin, who occupied it as 
a tavern until he built and 'rem'6Ved to tlie' tavern owned, subsequently, by Major Sproll. The 
'Red House' stood on an open,, unfenced space. !■ recollect having seen it in th^t condition. 
When it was taken down I do not know; but two j-ears ago, I found its chimney foundation, over 
which a new street has since been opened. The fort of 1709 was on the 'Red House' site, where 
Colonel Lydius, after having been expelled from Montreal, built a kind of block-house residence, 
which the French called Fort Lydius. and by whom it was burned in 1745. On its foundation 
Doctor Smyth erected the ' Red Houpe, ' which, after Smyth left for Canadaj was occupied bj^ 
Peter Treal, a yory ." —Letter from the late Hon. Wdliiam ^lay of Saratot^a S/>rin^s\-{/ons: a-resicfeut of 
(•tens Ynlls and Fort Kdivard) to the author, December \st^ i?i(>fy. ■. - ■ 



NARRATIVE OF SERGEANT LAMB. 221 

"boards, which were laid upon casks and served as a table. It was at 
this place that I eat bear's flesh for the first time and found it of cap- 
ital flavor. We were often put to it to t^'et anything to eat; notwith- 
standing this, however, I was very happy and contented, for I was 
with my children and beloved b)^ those by whoin I was surrounded. 
There were, if I remember righth', four or five adjutants staying with 
us. The evening was spent by the gentlemen in plaving cards and 
by myself in putting my children to bed." ' 

Beyond Fort Edward the county was peopled with German, Dutch 
and English settlers. The latter, pretending to be good royalists, 
were allowed by Burgoyne, against the strong representations of his 
officers, not only to carry arms, but to stroll about the camp at their 
leisure, and without any restraint. ''These men, however," says 
Riedesel in his Journal, " were all but Royalists. They consequently 
improved the opportunity to gain intelligence of all the occurrences 
in the army by appearances, and they forthwith communicated to the 
commanders of the enemy's forces that which the}' had seen and 
heard. Having finally reached the Hudson at the mouth of the Bat- 
tenkill, those of the German dragoons that were left were horsed. 
Their number had now diminished to twenty, and this number con- 
stituted the entire cavalry force of the invading armv. 



SERGEANT LAMB'S ACCOUNT OF HIS JOURNEY FROM 
FORT MILLER TO TICONDEROGA. 

While General BurgoN'ne was in camp at Fort Miller, at the mouth 
of the Battenkill, and just as he was on the point of making an ad- 
vance upon Saratoga preparatory to a still further movement against 
Albany, he sent Sergeant Lamb back to Ticonderoga on a particular 
mission. As part of this journey through the woods was made wathin 
the present limits of Washington County, I ha:ve thought the general, 
as well as the Washington County reader, would be glad to hear 
Lamb's narrative in full — especially when it is stated that the work 
from which it is taken is exceedingly rare — there being, with the 

' stone's Rieihsel /V- n-'- 



222 AVASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

exception of my own copy, bnt three in the li])raries of the United 
States. ' Lamb wi'ites as follows: 

" Dnring- onr continuance at Fort Miller, the writer of this memoir 
was selected by his officers to retnrn alone to Ticonderoj^a, for the 
purpose of takinu- back some of our bag'g-ao;e which had been left there, 
(ioing- unaccompanied on such a solitary route was dreary and dan- 
"•erous; but yet the selection of one from numbers, seemed to render 
the man chosen on the occasion a depository of peculiar confidence. 
He therefore undertook the duty imposed, not only without repinini^-, 
but with alacrity. A small detachment, if sent, could not pass unno- 
ticed or safe by such a route throug^h the woods, a distance of twenty 
miles, and a sufficient force could not be spared on the occasion. ' 
The sending' of a single soldier appeared, therefore, as the most ad- 
visable plan, and it was ordered by General Burgoyne, that he should, 
after arriving" at Tieonderoga, follow the Royal army with the bag- 
gage escorted by the recruits and as many of the convalescents re- 
maining at that post as could march with it. Pursuant to this arrange- 
ment, he prepared himself, taking twenty rounds of ball cartridges 
and some provisions. About noon he set out and at ff)ur in the after- 
noon reached our former encampment. Fort Edward, where he 
stopped awhile to refresh. Thence he proceeded with as much expe- 
dition as he ct)uld make to Fort Henry' on Lake (ieorge. Almost 



' Memoh- of kis own life, by R. Lamb. fi>rniLTly a seijifeant in the Royal Wel.sh ^"u.silieI•.-^. 
Dublin, 1811. I>ainb, after his return to Ireland, established a school for boys, which met with 
Xreat success. He evidently, as I have remarked before, was a man of jjfreat shrewdness of ob- 
servation and of education. That he retained the esteem of the officers in the British army is 
evident, since in his work he jjives the names of some four hundred subscribers to it — nearly all 
people of the highest prominence— and among whom were nearly all of the officers of the British 
army who served in America at that time. This occupation, as he informs us, enabled him for 
twenty-six year.s, to provide for and educate a j<rowin)? family— the source of satisfaction and 
solicitude. He was discharjfed without the pension usually given for past .services (occasioned 
by a mere technicality and "red tape") and being frequently advised by his friends to apply for 
it, in i8oq (twenty-five years after receiving his discharge) he memorialized His Royal Highness, 
the Duke of York, and was graciously favored by an immediate compliance with the prayer of 
his. petition. Lamb, as I hear from the secretary of the Royal Hospital in Chelsea, in his reply 
to my letter asking for the information under date of October 4th, i885, states that Lamb died in 

1 8,2. 

"^ Lamb refers here to the distance from Fort .Miller to Fort tleorge, where he would take 
water-carriage and not of course, to the distance from I'^ort Miller to Tieonderoga. 

' Meaning, of course. Fort tfeorge. Fort William Henry, that fort being then in ruins. 

Indeed, much coiifusion seems always to have arisen regarding these two forts. Thus, the 
French on Montcalm's expedition against Fort William Henry in 1757 (bnilt by Sir William John- 
son in 1755) spoke of going against Fort George-thougli that fort, which consisted, by the way, 
of only a single bastine, was not built until several years after by (ieneral Amherst. 



LAMB'S NARRATIVE CONTINUED. •22P, 

eleven o'clock at nig'ht, becoming;- very weary, he laid him down to 
sleep a little in a thick part of the wood. Althouoh the day had been 
hot, the nio-ht dews soon awakened him shiverino' with cold, having' 
rested but about two hours; then resuniing his march for fcnir or hve 
miles, he saw a light on his left, and directed his course toward it. 
Having' gained the place, he was saluted by a man at the door of his 
house, ' who informed him that a soldier's wife had been just taken 
in from the woods, where she was found by one of his family, in the 
pains of childbirth. Being admitted into this hospitable dwelling, the 
owner of which was one of the Society of Friends, or people called 
Quakers, he recognized the wife of a sergeant of his own eompan^^ 
The woman was delivered of a fine girl soon after, and having re- 
quested her friendlv host to allow her to stop, until his return from 
Ticonderoga, at which time he would be able to take her to the main 
army in one of his wagons, he set out on his loneh' route again. - Pre- 
vious to his leaving her, she informed him that she had determined to 
brave the dangers of the woods, in order to come up wnth her hus- 
band ; that she had crossed Lake Georg^e and was seized with the sick- 
ness of labor in the forest, where she must have perished, had she not 
been proventially discovered by the kind-hearted people under whose 
roof she then was. ■' It is worthy of remark that the author not long" 
since in this city, [Dul^lin] with great pleasure, saw the female who 
was born as he before related, in the wilderness near Lake George. 
She had been married to a man serving in the band of a militia regi- 
ment and the meeting with her revived in his mind the lively emotions 
of distressful and difficult scenes, which, although long passed, can 
never be forgotten by him. At Fort George he was provided with a 
boat to take him across to Ticonderoga." 

'' Lake George is situate soiUhwest of Lake Champlain, and its bed 
lies about loo feet higher. Its waters are beautifully clear, composing 

• Probably, not imich of a "house." nioru likely a loK-i-'abin. 

^ It miji^ht be quite a stiidv for some antiquarian of Washinj^ton County to truce out this par- 
ticular house occupied, at that time by this hospitable Quaker. I merely suj^jct'St it as of interest. 
I have been over this route again and again, but have never stumbled on the site of such a place. 
A glance, however, at the county records should show the exact spot. I do not know how this 
anecdote will strike the reader, but to me it seems peculiarly interesting. For perhaps, this little 
girl of a soldier's wife may have been the first child born in Washington Cf)unty ! 

' Contrast the sorrows of this poor private's wife with that of Mrs. Oenei-al Kiedesel, who 
only a day or two before had driven down in her calash to Fort Edward. \ct, .Mrs. Kiedesel -so 
large was her heart— had she met this poor wo-.nun on licr way. would undoubtedly have taken 
her in. and ministered to all her necessities. 



224 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

a sheet thirty-six miles long and from one to seven wide. It em- 
bosoms more than two hundred islands, affording for the most part 
but a ground of barren rocks covered with heath, and a few cedar and 
spruce trees. On each side it is skirted by prodigious mountains. 
The lake abounds with fish, and some of the best kind, such as the 
black or Oswego bass, also large speckled trout. ' It was called Lake 
Sacrament by the Canadians, who, in former times were at the pains, 
to secure its water for sacramental uses in their churches." - 

" There are two islands nearly in the center of it, in one of which, 
called Diamond Island, two companies of the 47th were stationed, 
commanded by Captain Aubrey, for the purpose of forwarding the 
prisoners over the lakes. These islands were, anterior to this time, 
said to swarm with rattle-snakes; so much so, that people would not 
venture to land upon them. ^ A bateau in sailing near " Diamond 
Island, •' having upset, the people in it gained the shore, but climbed 
the trees for fear of the snakes until they got an opportunity of a ves- 
sel passing, to leave it. Some hogs, however, which had been carried 
in the upset boat remaining on the island to which they swam, were 
some time afterward followed by their owners, who, to recover them, 
ventured ashore. They found the swine exceedingly fat, and, to 
their surprise, met but very few of the rattlesnakes which before had 
been so plenty. A hog being killed on the spot, made a good meal 
for the people. It was discovered by its stomach that the hog fed 
upon the rattlesnakes and had nearly cleared the island of such ob- 
noxious tenantry. " 

"The wild hog in the woods and the Indian himself are known to 

' This will be qtiite a revelation to fishermen in Washiniafton County at the present day — since 
it is generally supposed, not only that the name Oswego Bass is a tnodern one, taut that the bas.s. 
were introduced into Lake George comparatively recently. 

- The writer here, in cominon with Cooper, falls into a very common error. The French mis- 
sionary, Father Jaques, named it St. Sacraineni^ not on acco'unt of the purity of its waters, but 
because he arrived at the lake upon one of the festival days of that name — "lis arriverant, la 
veille du S. Sacrament, au bout du lac qui est joint au grand lac du Champlain, Les Iroquois le 
momment Andiatarocte, t^<.nnx<a.& <\\x\ AK'S.cKx. la on le lac se fertile. Le Pere le momma le lac du S. 
'^■a.cvA\T\firv\."— Jesuit Relations^ 1645-6. "The early Roman Catholic discoverers," says the late 
Rev. Mr. Van Rensselaer, "frequently connect the discoveries of places with the festival name 
on the calendar." Mr. C^ooper, in his Last of the Mohicans^ suggests the name of Horicon for thi.s 
lake (after a tribe that were in the habit of encamping around it during the hunting season.)- 
This, though quite poetical, is merely fanciful, as indeed, he claims, and has not the merit of his- 
torical truth. 

:i " Prench Mountain " on Lake George, still (1900) swarms with these reptiles. 

■' .So called on account of the .great amount of rock crystals that were formerly found there. 



LA^IB'S narrative: continued. 225 

feed on snakes as a delicacy. ' * * * There are but two serpents 
whose bites or stings prove mortal, viz: the pilot or the copperhead 
and the rattlesnake. For the bite or venom of the former, it is said 
that no remedy or cure is yet discovered. It is called '' Pilot " from. 
its being- the first in coming from its state of torpidity in the spring,, 
and its name of copper-head is taken from the copper colored spots of 
its head. The black snake is a good deal innocuous, and is remarka- 
ble for its agilitv, l)eauty, and its art or instinct of enticing birds or 
insects to approach it. I have heard only of one person who was 
stung bv a copperhead. He c[uickly swelled in a most dreadful man- 
ner, a multitude of spots of different hues on different parts of his 
bodv, alternately appeared and vanished ; his eyes were filled with 
madness and rage; he fixed them on all present with the most vindic- 
tive looks; he thrust out his tongue as the snakes do; he hissed 
through his teeth with inconceivable strength, and became an object 
of terror to all bystanders. To the lividness of a corpse, he united 
the desperate force of a maniac; they hardly were able to keep him 
fast, so as to guard themselves from his attacks; when, in the space- 
of two hours, death relieved the poor individual from his struggles 
and the spectators from their apprehension. "' The venom of the rat- 
tlesnake does not operate so soon, and hence there is more time to 
procure medical relief. There are several antidotes with which 
almost every family is provided against the poison of it. It is very 
inactive and unless pursued or vexed, perfectly inoffensive. * * * " 
" A rattlesnake once caused a most deplorable accident, which 1 shall 
relate to you, as I had it from the widow and mother of the victims. 
A Dutch farmer of the Minisink went to mowing with his negroes, in 
his boots — a precaution used to prevent being stung. Inadvertentlv, 
he trod on a snake, which immediately attacked his legs and, as he 



' " Tlu' Indians," .savs Hectoi' St. Julin, '" cul otf the head, skin and bodv, and cook it as we do 
eels and its flesh is extremely sweet and white." Anbury, also, in writin.ij about the rattlesnakes-. 
around Lake (ieorge, states that "its flesh is superior to that of the eel and produces a very rich, 
soup." Xor was this writer wronjf in his opinion of the palatable qualities of "Rattlesnake. 
soup!" In a letter from Castle-Town (now Castleton, Vt. ) quoted in my "Revolutionary Let-, 
ters," under date of July 27, 1777, a German officer, writing from Burgoyne's camp, savs: "On 
one occasion the Indians begged of us a rattlesnake which one of our party had killed and made 
of it a very nice soup. These delicacies are extremely welcome in the kitchen of Gen. Burgoyne." 
It thus appears that the British general was even at this time on short rations. 

- The parallel here between one bitten by a do.g who Ijarks anil the one bitten by a snake who 
"hisses" will be obvious to anv one. 

[28 1 



226 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

drew back in order to renew its blow, one of his negroes cut it in two 
with his sevthe. They prosecuted their work and returned home. At 
night the farmer pulled off his boots and went to bed and was soon 
after seized with a strange sickness at his stomach. He swelled and 
before a physician conld be procured he died. A few days after his 
decease, his son ])ut on the same boots and went to the meadow to 
work. At night he pulled them off", went to bed and experienced 
similar sufferings of sickness as took off" his father, and died in the 
same manner. A little before he expired, a doctor came but, not be- 
ing able to assign what c<)uld be the cause of so singular a disorder, 
he pronounced both father and son to have died of witchcraft. Some 
weeks after the widow sold all her moveables for the benefit of her 
younger children, and the farm was leased. One of the neighbors 
who bought the boots, presently put them on and fell sick, as had 
happened in the case of the other two. But this man's \\ife by what 
had befel the former family, dispatched one of her negroes for an em- 
inent physician who, fortunately having heard of the dreadful aft"air, 
ascertained the cause and applied remedies which recovered the man. 
The boots, which had been so fatal, were then carefully examined,- 
and he found that the two fangs of the snake had been left in the 
'leather, after being wrenched out of their sockets by the strength 
with which the snake had drawn back his head. The bladders, which 
contained the poison, and several of the small nerves were still fresh, 
and had adhered to the boot. The unfortunate father and son had both 
been poisoned by wearing these boots, in which action they imper- 
ceptibly scratched their legs with the points of the fangs, through the 
hollow of which some of the astonishing venom was conveyed." ' 

"The author, having arrived and completed his business at Ticon- 
deroga, he accompanied the baggage over Lake George and to Fort 
Edward and Fort Miller — attended b}^ a number of seamen sent to 
work the battcaux on the Hudson River. On his returning, he called 
on the good Oiiaker who had lodged the sick wife of his fellow soldier, 
but to his astonishment, was told that on tlie morrow after he left her 
there in child-l)irth, she had set out to meet her husband against the 
wishes and repeated entreaties of the whole family, who were most 
anxious to retain her until his return. vShc could not be persuaded to 

' I am fullv aware llial this story has lonjf been tnirrent in many househokls— many consider- 
ini; it apocrvphal; but I ,i?ive this e.xtract as .showin.n' tliat il lias its origin in Lamij's statement, 
wlio. it will be seen, received it at first hand. 



LA.MirS NARRATIVE CONXLUDED. 227 

stop. l)ut set out on foot with her new born infant and arrived safe 
with lier husband, whom she had foHowed with such fond solicitude. 
She tlnis g'ave an instance of the strength of female attachment and 
fortitude, which shows that the exertions of the sex are often calcu- 
hited to call forth our cordial admiration." 

" In a short time the author had the i^-ratification of conducting- the 
stoj-es and baggage for which he had been despatched, in safety to the 
army, and to receive the thanks of his officers, for the manner in 
which he executed the orders confided to him. By this conveyance 
the forces obtained a month's provisions." 

" During the time (nearly a month) ' that Burgoyne, with his arniv 
lay at or near the Battenkill," writes Mr. Charles Neilson in his 
" Burgoyne's Campaign," '" an incident took place which J think wor- 
thy of notice, as showing the spirit and ardor of the Whigs in those 
troublous times, and their determination to cut off the supplies from 
the invading army." 

" The Tories, or cowboys as they were then called, were in the con- 
stant habit of plundering the inhabitants on both sides of the Hudson 
river of their grain, pf)ultry and other kinds of eatables and driving' 
off their cattle, hogs and sheep, wherever they could find them, for 
the purpose of supplying the British army with provisions, for which 
no doubt they were well paid. Though often pursued and sometimes 
roughly handled by the Whigs, they still persisted. At one time in 
particidar they had collected and secreted in a deep, dark ravine, 
branching off from ^lill Creek, a large quantity of provisions, such as 
beef, pork, flour, and other articles of consumption, with the intention 
of transporting them, at some favorable opportunity, to the British 
camp. By accident it was found out, and the place of concealment 
discovered; upon which my father, at the head of about twentv reso- 
lute fellows, which he had collected together and well armed, went 
on in the night for the purpose of taking or destroving their plunder. 
On their arrival within a short distance of the depot, one of them crept 
slyly along, when he discovered the Tories, al:)out thirty in numl:)er; 
five of whom appeared to be armed and keeping guard, while the 
others were in the act of loading i'our wagons which stood a short dis- 
tance from the depot, and which they liad brought for the purpose of 
conveying away their stores. The assailing ]:)arty then held a secret 

' An error, unless Fort Miller, ten miles above, is considered a part of the encampment at tlie 
Kattenkill. 



22H WASHINGTON COUNTY: n\S HISTORY. 

council of war, to consult whether, the enemy bein^s^ so much su])crior 
in number, it was advisable to proceed; whereupon it was unani- 
mously a<;'rccd that they should \y'o ahead,' and they then made their 
arrano-cments accordingly. '" 

" The place where the stores were concealed, was behind a point pro- 
jecting from the opposite side, around which the ravine curved, form- 
ing the bank on the side of the assailants into a semi-circle, around 
which, it was preconcerted, they should extend themselves in couples, 
and silently approach the bank or brow of the hill, and at the word of 
command, ' Cofuv on boys ! ' they were all to give a whoop and rush on, 
though not to fire unless the Tories made resistance; but in that case, 
to fight their way through in the best way they could. All prelimin- 
aries being arranged, they formed themselves in order of battle, and 
silently moved on to the brow of the hill forming the ravine; and when 
my father, who was at the head, and as previously ag-reed, gave the 
word ' Come on boys ! ' they gave such horrid, continued, and frightful 
yells, and at the same time rushing down the hill like a mighty torrent, 
that by the time they had got to the bottom oi the ra\-ine, 
the enemy had all decamped, leaving their arms and baggage 
a prey to the victcn's. The assailants, not ^■et satisfied, pursued on a 
considerable distance, shouting, whooping and making the woods ring 
with their horrid yells, as though a thousand Indians had been let 
loose upon the frightened fugitives. Having found no enemy in their 
pursuit, the assailants returned to the deserted camp, to examine their 
booty; but as the Tories had not yet. brought, or had concealed their 
horses, and having no means of bringing off the wagons, the}' went to 
work and broke them in pieces, as much as they could. Having stove 
in the barrels and scattered and otherwise destroyed the flour and 
other provisions, they all returned home safe and sound, and much to 
the joy of their families and friends; bringing with them twenty-five 
stand of arms, with which Burgoyne had furnished the Tories, and 
which the victors considered lawful prize." 

" Thus ended this hazardous and praiseworthy exploit, and for which 
m\- father was honored with the title of Captain, a title, as is now well 
known to many, by which for a number of years he was addressed and 
until he was ap])ointed a civil magistrate, when the title was exchanged 
for Esquire." 

" About the same time, small parties of Indians, | detached from Bur- 
goyne"s army at I^'^ort Miller,] were seen prowling about the vicinity, 



np:ils()NS xVdventure. 229 

<jf whom mv father and a few resolute fellows had been in pursuit. 
On their return [from the outskirts of the Battenkill and Fort Edward] 
lie had oceasion, while the others passed on, to eall at_^a Mrs. Ezekiel 
Ensign's, who afterwards, and for a number of years, kei^t,^ public 
house a little north of Wilber's Basin. Wliile sitting- there aboiftiiine 
o'cloek in the evening, in conversation with Mr. Ensign, a ferocioius 
h)oking g'iant like Indian, armed and accoutred in the usual costume 
of an aboriginal warrior, ushered himself into the room and, after 
-eyeing them sharply for a moment, he with one hand drew from his 
belt a huge tomahawk, which he flourished above his head in true 
Indian style, and with the other a long scalping knife, whose glitter- 
ing steel became more brilliant in the dazzling glare of a bright torch- 
light, and with which lie exhibited, in pantomime, his dexterous man- 
ner of taking scaljis. At the same time, with eyes flashing fire and 
turning alternately from one to the other, as they sat in opposite 
directions, he accompanied his daring acts in broken English, with 
threats of instant death if they attempted to move or speak. Ensign, 
being a cripple in one arm, and feeling his own weakness, should 
resistance become necessary, and being in momentary expectation of 
receiving the fatal blow, became fixed and immovable in his chair, 
with a countenance of ashy paleness." 

"On the other hand, my father, being a man of great muscular 
strength, and of uncommon agility, and having had many encounters 
with the Indians, prepared himself for a desperate event. To this 
effect, while the Indian would momentarily direct his attention to 
Ensign, he would imperceptibly turn himself in his chair and in this 
manner would, from time to time, keep silentl}- mox'ing by little and 
little, until he succeeded in placing himself in a position in which he 
could grasp with both' hands the back posts of his chair. He then 
watched his opportunitv and, the moment the Indian turned his eye 
from him, he grasped the chair and, with almost the rapidity of 
• lightning, sprang upon his feet, whirled the chair over his head and 
aimed at him a desperate blow, but the Indian dodging the blow he 
missed his aim. The Indian, having recovered his position, imme- 
diately sprang with a hideous yell, and with his tomahawk uplifted to 
strike the fatal blow, but before he could effect his direful purpose, 
the chair was brought around the second time and with redoubled 
force, athwart his head and shoulders, which brought him to the floor." 

" No sooner had he fallen than my father, dropjiing the chair, Sj^rang 



230 VVASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

upon him, and wrenched from his firm grasp the dreadful weapon of 
death and would have disabled him on the spot, but Ensign, who, l)v 
this time had received the power of speech, and supposing he intended 
to take the Indian's life, begged of him not to kill him in the house. 
He then, holding him in his firm grasp, called for a rope, which was. 
soon procured, and with the assistance of Ensign, he succeeded, 
though not withoiit a dreadful struggle, in binding the savage mon- 
ster. By this time two of the neighbors, Avho had been alarmed by 
some female of the family, came m. when he was shut up in an out- 
house, with the doors barred and left in their keeping, during the 
remainder of the night, to be disposed of in the morning as circum- 
stances might require. In the night, the guard believing him secure 
and allowing themselves to fall asleep, he made his escape by remov- 
ing some portion of the floor and under wall, on the opposite side of 
the prison to which his guard was posted, much to the regret, not 
only of liis victor, but to many of the neighbors who had flocked 
together to obtain a sight of the conquered savage."' 

Mr. Neilson, also gives a graphic account of the terrors which fell 
upon the people of Washington County by the advance of the British 
army. He says : 

" On the approach of Burgoyne with so powerful, and as yet suc- 
cessful an army, with his horde of unrestrained savages, who were 
continually in advance and on his flanks, prowling about the country, 
plundering, murdering and scalping all who refused loyalty to the 
British King, the inhabitants on both sides of the river, in the wildest 
consternation and alarm, fled in every direction. The horrors of war, 
however mitigated by the laws and usages of civilization, are at all 
times sufficiently terrific, but when to these the fierce cruelties of a 
cloud of savages are superadded, those only who are familiar with an 
American border warfare, can form an adequate o])inion of its atroci- 
ties. In one ])lace a long cavalcade of ox-carts, occasionally inter- 
mixed with wagons, filled with all kinds of furniture hurriedly thrown 
in, and not often selecLcd by the owners with reference to their use 
and value, on occasions of si;ch alarm, were stretched for some dis- 
tance along the road; while in another might be seen a number on 
horseback and, here and there, two mounted at once on a steed pant- 
ing under the weight of a double load, closely followed by a crowd of 
pedestrians, and some, perhaps weeping, mothers with a child or two 
screaming in their arms or on their backs, trudging along with fearful 



BURGOYNE ADVANCES TO SARATOGA. -ir.l 

and hurried step. These found great difficulty in keeping" up with 
the rapid flight of their mounted friends. Here and there would be 
seen some humane person assisting the more unfortunate b\' reliev- 
ing them of their burdens with which they were encumbered, but 
generally a principle of selfishness prevented inueh interchange of 
friendly offices — everv one for himself was the common cry." 

" To those who now sit quietly under their own shady bowers, or by 
the fireside long endeared by tranquility and happiness, it is left to 
imagine with what feelings they hastened to abandon their homes 
and their all, as it were, and fly for safety, they knew not whither. 
The men of this generation can never know what were the sorrows of 
those fathers who saw their children exposed to danger and death and 
what the agonies'of those kind mothers, of whom my own respected 
mother was one, who pressed their offspring to their bosoms in the 
constant apprehension of seeing them torn from their embraces to 
l)ecome the victims of savage cruelty; and it is impossible with suffi- 
cient force to describe the appalling distress that many families ex- 
perienced at that moment of peril and alarm." 



CHAPTER XVII. 

1777- 
BUR(i()VNE'S CAMPAIGN CONTIXIH^:!). 

TUK Al)\ ANCK OK BlRCDVNE BaTTI.K OF THK I9TII OF SkI'1 liiMDKR — A.NKCDOTES, ETC. 

All ION OF I HE 7111 OF OCTOHEK BkAVERV OF AkXOI.T) — TlIE TAKING. OF THE GkEAT 

Redofht — Deaiii op- Cofoxel Bkevma.w — Death and Bfkfaf of Gfnekae 
Fkasfk. 

While Burg()_\-ne, who, it will be remembered, had adx'anced as far 
as Fort Miller as early as the 19th of August, was making prepara- 
tions for crossing the Hudson, with a view of forming a Junction with 
Sir Henry Clinton at Albany in accordance with the plan adopted by 
the British Ministry, he encamped on an extensive flat or intervale 
about one hundred vards north of Lansing's saw-mill. Indeed, it was 



282 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

not very far frcjm the site of the fort that Colonel Sehuyler built in. 
1709 which was located on the east side of the river on the second 
Hig-hland soi:th of the Battenkill, in what was then called Saratoga; 
though, as a matter of fact, it was then and is now in the Connty of 
AVashington. At that place the Hudson could be forded through the 
rapids until within a short distance of the west shore where a short 
bridge was constructed across a deep, narrow channel in the rocks '■ 
and was upon the farm occupied in 1876 by Simon vShcldon, whose 
ancestors have occupied the place about a centurv. 

At length, on the 14th of September, all preparations being com- 
pleted and Lamb having brought to Burgoyne (as seen in the last 
chapter) a month's provisions, the Royal army, with the exception of 
the German troops, crossed the Hudson on a bridge of boats just 
below the vSaratoga Falls, two miles above Schuylerville and some 
eig'hty rods northwest of the residence of Abraham Yates Rogers. " 
The avant gicard^ under Fraser, was the first to march over. At nine 
o'clock the reserve under Lieutenant Colonel Breymann followed after 
them in order to cover Fraser's left flank. The Germans, who formed 
the left wing of the army, went over last of all — two days afterwards 
— and as soon as the last man had crossed the bridge it was broken 
up. They had passed the Rjibicon, and all further communication 
with Canada was now cut off. The army, which, on first setting off 
from there, was 10,000 strong, had already diminished to 6,000, one 
thousand having been left at Ticonderoga. The precise point where 
the British army left the bridge, on the west side of the river, is upon 
the farm now (1900) owned by Daniel A. Bullard, and the excavation 
through the embankment is yet plainly visible, and will long remain 
a monument of that event. 

The British army, after crossing the bridge, made a short tarry on 
Bullard's farm and then encamped on the heights and plains of Sara- 
toga near the mouth of Fish Creek — the present site (^f Schuylerville, 

' 'I'he " Brunswick Tournul " states that as eaiiv as the loth of Auj^ust— the dav of the British 
army's taking position at l-"ort Miller — a bridge was made aboTe tti^ present Saratoga Falls or 
rapids, bnt a better place being found further down, it was broken up and a new one built beloiu 
the rapids. 

- The entrenchments which were at that time thrown up to cover the passage of the river^ 
are still (igoo) to be seen very plainly. They are three hundred feet in length and from four to- 
si.x feet high, but are now overgrown with scrub pine. Mr. Rogers, whose grandfather lived on 
the farm at the time, informs me that within thirty years the wooden platforms for the canncm 
were in existence behind the entrenchments. The survey, bv the wav. of the railroad to .Sara- 
toga Springs was through these entrenchments. 



BURGOYNE ENCAMPvS AT SARATOGA. 233 

N. Y. — within a few niiles of the Northern Division of the Continen- 
tals under Gates — Burg-oyne selecting General vSchuyler's House a^ 
his headquarters.' 

After crossing- the bridge, the 9th, 20th, 31st and 62nd regiments, 
with the artillery, were stationed on the plain near the river (the 
present " Bullard farm ") between the barracks and the Fishkill — the 
batteaux on the right bank being crossed on the rig-ht bank by six 
companies of the 47th. These barracks were used as a hospital and 
were located on the north side of the road to Saratoga Springs, 
direct]}- upon the present site of the barns of the late Hon. Alonzo 
Welsh of Schuylerville, who resided a few rods east of the barns in 
the main village street of Schuylerville. The barracks were stand- 
ing and occupied by a farmer up to within forty years. In March, 
1867, Mr. Welsh, while plowing back of his barn, came across the 
burying place of the hospital. The bones thus exhumed, he carefully 
reburied. 

The hills around Saratoga were so densely covered with woods and 
underbrush that it was impossible to place the army in position to 
withstand an attack from the Americans. Accordingly, all of the 
generals carefullv inspected the high ground nearest the camp and 
agreed upon a position to be taken up at a moment's notice in case of 
an attack. The situation of the army, moreover, was rendered still 
more precarious by the fact of its being divided by the river, and thus 
obliged to be constantly on its guard. New entrenchments were 
therefore thrown up, especially on the eastern side of the river. 

After the evacuation of Fort Edward, Schuyler, as we have seen, 
had fallen down the river, first from Moses Creek to Stillwater, and 
then to Van Schaick's Island at the mouth of the Mohawk and, as we 
have already said, he was superseded by Gates, who, on the 8th of 
September, advanced with six thousand men to Bemis Heights — three 
miles north of Stilhvater. These heights were at once fortified under 
the direction of the Polish engineer, Kosciuszko. Along the brow of 
the river he threw up a line of l)rcastw(>rks about three-fourths of a 

' It will be remembei-ed that (ieneral SchuylcT had been superseded by General (iates, who 
arrived and assumed the command of the Northern army on the igth of Aujjust— Schuyler leav- 
ini< Stillwater and retreating to Van Scaick's Island at Half Moon (now Waterford, N. Y.) being- 
considered, from a military point of view, a mistake-— a fact which the opponents of Schuyler in 
the Continental Congress — among whom, to his shame be it spoken, was John Adams, 
owing to his ridiculous jealousy of Xew York men— did not fail to take advantage of. 

I -i!) 1 



234 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

mile in extent, with a strong battery at eaeh end, and one in the cen- 
ter, in such positions as to sweep the alluvial meadows between them 
and the river. A line of entrenchments, also, ran from west to east 
half a mile in length and terminated on the east end on the west side 
of the intervale. The right vcing occupied a hill nearest the river and 
was protected in front by a wide, marshy ravine, and behind this by 
abattis. From the foot of the hill, across the flats to the river, an 
entrenchment was opened, at the extremity (^f which, on the margin 
of the river, another strong battery was constructed. The left wing- 
commanded b}' Arnold (who, after the defeat of vSt. Leger at Fort 
Stanwix had joined Gates) extended on to a height three-quarters of a 
mile further north — its left flank being also protected on the hillside 
bv felled trees or slashhigs. Gates's headquarters were in the center, 
a little south of what was then and is now (1900) known as the " Neil- 
son Farm. " 

On, the 15th the Germans, as has been stated, having crossed the 
river and destix)yed the bridge, Burgoyne gave the order to advance 
" in search of the enemy," supposed to he some where in the forest, 
for, strange as it appears, that General had no knowledge of the posi- 
tion of the Americans, nor had he taken pains to inform himself upon 
this vital point. The army in gala dress, with its left wing resting on 
the Hudson, set off on its march with drums beating, colors flying and 
their arms glistening in the sunshine of the lovely autumn day. " It 
was a superb spectacle," says an eye-witness, " reminding one of a 
grand parade in the midst of peace." ' That night they pitched their 
camp at Dovegate House (Coveville). " 

' In one of the tablets of the Saratojfa ^lonument, this march of the Hritish army is well rep- 
resented — showing the ladies — as to a picnic — going through the woods — with some of the officers 
holding their lap-dogs, etc. This is iicff exaggerated, for from contemporary accounts, it all took 
place as represented. 

^ Up to three years since, this house was in existence. But, vandalism being triionphant^ and 
the state— notwithstanding the plea of the D. A. R.— paying no attention to their expostulations, 
it has been within the last two years torn down. We can not speak of this without the strongest 
terms of reprobation. Fortunately, however, I got some of the timbers from which — through the 
courtesy of Mr. C. S. Closson of Schuylerville, X. Y. — I had several relics made, one of which I 
sent to Lady Carnovan, the widow of Lord Carnovan, late Lieutenant-(ieneral of Ireland — the 
great nephew of Lady Harriet Acland. 

It may be as good a place as any now to sav to the reader, that the limits assigned for this 
history, forbid me to give the very many anecdotes connected with the Burgoyne Campaign. 
All who wi.sh to investigate further are therefore referred to either " Sylvester's Account of Sar- 
atoga," or Johnson's "History of Washington County," where they will have full information^ 
though chiefly taken from my works. Also, in regard to the origin of the name "Coveville" 
the reader -'s referred to my " Burgovne's Campaign" for a letter to the author from the late 
Dr. Asa Fitch. 



BURCtOYNE advances from vSARATOGA. 235 

On the following- mornino-, the enemy's drums were heard calling" 
the men to arms, but. although in such close proximity, the invading- 
armv knew not whence the sounds came, nor in what strength he was 
posted. Indeed, it does not seem that up to this time Burgoyne had 
sent off edairciirs or scouting parties to discover the situation of the 
enemy. Now, however, he m'ounted his horse to attend to it himself, 
taking with him a strong body-guard, consisting of the four regiments 
of vSpecht and Hesse-Hanan with six heavy pieces of ordnance and 
two hundred workmen to construct bridges and roads. This was the 
party with which he proposed "to scout, and if occasion served" — 
these were his very words — " to attack the Rebels on the spot." This 
remarkable scouting party moved with such celerity, as to accomplish 
two and a half miles the first day.' when in the evening, the entire 
army, which had followed on, encamped at Sword's House, within 
five miles of the American lines. 

The night of the i8th passed quietly, the scouts that had finally 
been sent out having returned without trace of the enemy. Indeed, 
it is a noteworthy fact, that throughout the entire campaign Burgoyne 
was never able to obtain accurate knowledge either of the position of 
the Americans or of their movements, whereas, all his own plans were 
openly known long before they were officially given out in orders. 
"I observe," writes Mrs. General Riedesel at this time, "that the 
wives of the officers are beforehand informed of all the military plans. 
Thus the Americans anticipate all our movements, and expect us 
whenever we arrive, and this of course, injures our affairs." 

On the morning of the 19th, a further advance was again ordered, an 
advance which prudence dictated should be made with the greatest 
caution. The army was now in the immediate vicinity of an alert 
and thoroughly aroused enemy, of whose strength they knew as little 
as of the country.- Notwithstanding this, the army not only was 
divided into three columns, each marching half a mile apart, but at 11 

■ A Xew Ihimpshire regiment, while endeav(irinj< to head off Clinton and save Albany, 
marched /o/Vj/ miles from Saratoga (Schuylerville) in fourteen hours and forded the Mohawk 
below Cohoes Falls. Betknafs New Hampshire. Col. Otto Williams, the bosom friend of Washing- 
ton, marched forty miles on the i8th of November, 1781. Bancroft X, 47.3- Tarleton rode seventy 
miles in twenty-four hours, destroying public stores on the way. Idem. And Cornwallis, in 
marching order, pursued Greene's lightened retreating troops at the rate of thirty miles a day. 

- " At this encampment (Sword's House) .several ..f our men having proceeded into a field of 
potatoes, were surprised by a party of the enemy that killed about thirty of them. They might 
without difficulty have been surrounded and taken prisoners, but the Americans could not rcs'si 
the opportunity of shedding blood."— /.«/«i5V Memoirs^ Dublin, j8i i. 



23G WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

o'clock a cannon fired as a signal for the start, echoes through the 
still aisles of the primeval forest, informing the Americans both of 
the position and the forward movement of the British. 

^^ ^^2^^ 

HUDSON RIVER 



1 




5 

Left Column under Riedesel. ""s 

\ N 

\ \ 

6 ^ \ 

\ "-^ W 

^^ Centre Column under Burgoyne . 2 

\ .' — 

\ / 

^ -~ 4 

Right Column under Fraser. 

ROUTK OF THE ENGLISH TROOPS TO FREEMAN'S FARM. 

1. Bemis Heights. 

2. Freeman's Farm. 

3. Route of Fraser to iissist Burgoyne. 

4. Road to Quaker Springs. 

5. Dovegate's. 

6. Sword's House. 

The left column, which followed the river-road, consisted of four 
(xcrman regiments, and the 47th British, the latter constituting a 
guard for the batteaux. These troops, together with all the heavy 
artillery and baggage, were under the command of General Riedesel. 
The right column, made up of the English (Grenadiers and the light 
battalion, with eight six-pounders under Lieutenant-Colonel Brey- 
mann, was led b_\- General Fraser, and followed the present road from 
Ouakcr Springs to Stillwater, on the heights. The center colunni, 
also on the heights and midway between the left and right wings, 
consisted of the 9th, 20th, 21st and 62d regiments, with six six-poun- 
ders, and was led by Burgovne in person. The front and flanks of 
the center and right columns were protected by Canadians, Provin- 



BRITISH ENCOUNTER COLONEL MORGAN. 2P.7 

cials and Indians. The march was exceedingly tedious, as frequently 
new bridi^'cs had to be built and trees cut down and removed.' 

About one o'clock in the afternoon Colonel Mori>-an,' who with liis 
sharpshc^oters had been detached to watch the movements of the 
British and harass them, owini>- to the dense woods, unexpectedly fell 
in with the center cohimn and sharply attacked it; whereupon Eraser, 
on the rii^ht, wheeled his troops, and coming- up forced Morgan to 
^give way. A regiment being ordered to the assistance of the latter, 
whose numbers had been sadly scattered by the vigor of the attack, 
the battle was renewed with spirit. By four o'clock the action had 
become general, Arnold, with nine Continental regiments and Mor- 
gan's corps, having completely engaged the whole force of Burgoyne 
and Eraser. The contest, accidentally begun in the first instance, 
now assumed the most obstinate and determined character — the sol- 
diers often being engaged hand to hand. The gnnmd being mostly 
covered with woods em'oarassed the British in the use of their field 
artillery, while it gave a corresponding advantage to Morgan's sharp- 
shooters. The artillery fell into the hands of the Americans at ever}" 
alternate discharge, but the latter could neither turn the guns upon 
the enemy nor bring them off. 

Meanwhile, (leneral Riedesel, who had kept abreast of the other 
two columns, and had reached the present site of Wilbur's Basin, 
hearing the firing, hastened through the woods to the relief of the 
commander-in-chief. When he arrived on the scene, the Americans 
were posted on a corner of the woods. In front of this corner of the 
forest and entirely surrounded by dense woods was a vacant space on 
which the English were drawn up in line. The struggle was for the 
possession of this clearing — known then as it is to this day — as " Eree- 
man's Earm." The timely arrival of the German general alone saved 
the army of Burgoyne from total rout. Charging on the double- 
quick with fixed bayonets, he repelled the Americans; and Eraser and 
Breymann were preparing to follow up this ■ advantage, Avhen they 
were recalled by Burgoyne and reluctantly forced to retreat. General 

' It is of interest, and also a curious fact, that a// of the /rc,v-c«/ roads, now in existence be- 
tween Schuylerville and Stillw-ater on both sides of the river, follow out the very ones cut ont by 
Burj<(iyne"s ensfineers — showing; how skillfully the latter took advaiuaiie of tlie topographical 
conditions of the country. 

- It shoulil be remembered that Washington, himself, detailed Morgan to the relief of Chites, 
ij<norinjj, for the time, the necessity of keepinsC .Mortjan with him. so we see the prescience of 
Washini;ton. 



238 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Schuyler, referrino- to this, in his diary says: "Had it not been for 
this order of the British g-eneral, the Americans would have been, if 
not defeated, at least held in such check as to have made it a drawn 
battle, and an opportunity afforded the British to collect much pro- 
vision of which they stood sorely in need." The British officers also 
shared the same opinion. Fraser and Riedesel severely criticised the 
order, telling' Biirgoyne in very plain terms that "he did not know 
how to avail himself of his advantages." This reaction was, more- 
over, the more striking, because they had placed the utmost confi- 
dence in his capacity at the beginning of the expedition. They were 
also, still more confirmed in their dislike, by the g-eneral belief that 
'le was addicted to drinking. Neither does this seem to be owing to 
:.n unwillingness to fight or a lack of esprit \ for when, subsequently, 
the men were reduced to short rations, " they put up, " says General 
Riedesel, "with this, as also with all the fatiguing labors, duties and 
night watches, with the greatest patience and perseverance." 

In connection with this battle, the heroism of Lieutenant Hervey of 
the 62d regiment, and nephew to the adjutant-general of the same 
name, should not be forgotten. Early in the action he received sev- 
eral wounds and was repeatedly ordered off by Lieutenant-Colonel 
Anstruther, but his enthusiasm would not allow him to leave his- 
brave comrades as long as he could stand. Presently, however, a ball 
striking one of his legs, his removal became a necessity, and while he 
was being borne away, another bullet wounded him mortally. In 
this situation the surgeon recommended him to take a powerful dose 
of opium if he would avoid seven or eight hours of dreadful torture. 
To this he consented and when the Colonel entered the tent with 
Major Harnage, who were both wounded, they asked whether he had 
any " affairs they could settle for him ? " His reply was, that being a 
minor everything was already adjusted; but he had one request which 
he retained just life enough to utter, and with the words "Tell my 
uncle I died like a soldier," he expired. 

Nig-ht put an end to the conflict. The Americans withdrew within 
their lines, and the British and German forces bivouacked on the bat- 
tlefield, the Brunswicks composing in part the right wing. Both par- 
ties claimed the victory, yet, as the intention of the Americans was 
not to advance, but to maintain their position, and that of the Eng- 
lish, not to maintain theirs, but to gain ground, it is easy to see which 
had the advantage of the day. 



BURGOYNE PAUSEvS. 289 

In this battle an unusual number of youthful officers fell on the 
British side, as their army abounded at this time, with young- men of 
hio-h respectability, who, after several years of peace, anterior to the 
Revolution, were attracted to the profession of arms. Three subal- 
terns of the 2oth rci^-iment, on this occasion — the oldest of which did 
not exceed the age of seventeen years — were buried together. In 
confirmation of this I cite the following: "The morning after the 
action, I visited," says (General Wilkinson, "the wounded prisoners, 
who had not been dressed and discovered a charming vouth not more 
than sixteen years old lying among them, feeble, faint, pale and stiff 
in his gore. The delicacy of his aspect and the qualitv of his clothing- 
attracted my attention and I found on enquiry, that he was an Ensign 
Phillips. He told me he had fallen by a wound in his leg or thigh 
and as he lay on the ground was shot through the thigh bv an army 
follower, a murderous villain,' who owned up to the deed, but I now 
forget his name. The moans of the hapless youth affected me to 
tears. I raised him from the straw on which he lay, took him in my 
arms and removed him to a tent, where ever}' comfort was provided 
and every attention paid to him, but his wounds were mortal and he 
expired on the 21st. When his name was mentioned to General Gates 
he exclaimed, ' Just Heaven, he may be the nephew of mv wife," but 
enquiries afterward showed that the fact was otherwise." 

It was the intention of General Burgoyne, the morning following 
this engagement to attack the Americans on their left with his entire 
force. His sick and wounded Vv^ere disposed of at the river; the army 
was drawn up in order of battle, and he waited only for the dispersion 
of a heavy fog, when General Eraser observed to him that the grena- 
diers and light infantry, who were to lead the attack, appeared 
fatigued by the duty of the preceding day, and that if he would sus- 
pend the operation iintil the next morning (the 21st) he believed they 
would enter into the combat with greater spirit. Burgovne yielded 
to this suggestion, the orders were countermanded and the troops re- 
turned to their quarters.' Meanwhile, in the course of the night a 
spy reached the British general with a letter from Sir Henrv Clinton, 

' There were plenty of such both on the Avierican .side, as well as on the British. Let us do 
justice to each side, for the fact is that as many, if indeed, not more atrocities were committed 
by the Americans than by the British. 

- In this connection see Oeneral Wilkinson's Memoirs, showing that had Bur.icoyne attacked 
the Americans on the jist he would have j^ained a decisive victory. 



24:0 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

advising' him of his intended ascent of the Hudson for his relief. 
Thereupon, he resolved to postpone the meditated attack and await 
the arrival of Clinton at Albany.' 

Accordingly, the day that was to h'ave witnessed a renewal of the 
action of the 19th, Burg-oyne devoted to the laying out of a fortified 
camp. He made the site of the late battle his extreme right and ex- 
tended his entrenchments across the high ground to the river. For 
the defense of the right wing, a redoubt (known as the "Great Re- 
doubt "') was thrown up on the late battlefield, n'ear the corner of the 
woods that had been occupied by the Americans during the action, on 
the eastern edge of the ravine. The defense of this position was 
entrusted to the corps of Fraser. The reserve corps of Breymann 
was posted on an eminence on the western side of the ravine, for the 
protection of the right flank of Fraser"s division." The right wing of 
the Engiisli was placed in close proximity to the left wing of Fraser, 
thus extending the line on the left to the river bank, at Wilbur's. 
Basin, where were placed the hospital and supply trains. The entire 
front was protected by a deep muddy ditch, running nine hundred 
paces in front of the outposts of the left wing. This ditch ran in a 
curve around the right wing of the English brigade, thereby separat- 
ing Eraser's corps from the main body. 



' That Bur.ijdyne, however, believed that he wa.s %uhipj>cd by the result of the action of the icjtli 
of September, is evident from this fact. In the library of the late John Carter Brown of Provi- 
dence, R. I., there i,s a volume of Steiiman with marginal notes in the hand- writing of Sir Henry 
Clinton, who once owned the book, and which I have myself seen. In that portion of the work 
where Stedman speaks of the failure of Burgoyne, Clinton writes as follows: " If General had 
not been sure of a co-operation, 'tis pity he ever passed the Hudson. Sir Henry Clinton, think- 
ing General Burgoyne might want some co-operation (though he had not called for it in any of 
his letters) offered in his of the 12th of September, to make an attempt on the forts as soon as the 
expected reinforcements should arrive from Europe, (ieneral Burgoyne fought the Battle [the 
first battle] of Saratoga on the igth, and on the 21st, tells General Clinton in answer, that uo nt- 
ii/ii/>t, or even the menace 0/ an attack %vould be of use.''' 

In justice to Burgoyne, however, it .should be said that Stedman was here clearly in error. 
First. It will be remembered by my readers who have followed this history that Burgoyne ex- 
pressly stipulated that Clinton .should join him. Again, which has lately been discussed, which 
fact, of course Stedman could not know when he wrote the above, the orders for Clinton to make 
a junction with Burgoyne were made out by Lord George Cermaine, but owing to his going to a din- 
ner-party, he forgot to send them by a ship, and hence they were pigeon-holed. (See Lickey's His- 
tory 0/ England.) On such trivial things does the fate of empires sometimes depend. 

- The traces of Breymann's entrenchments are yet (igoo) very plainly to be seen. They lie 
about twenty roiSs northwest of Leggett's house. The place is considerably elevated by nature, 
and is known among the farmers in the vicinity as Burgoyne' s Hill. Pi-operly, it should be Brey- 
mann's Hill. It was at the northeast corner of this eminence that Arnold was wounded in the 
action of the 7th of October. A tablet commemorating this event has been erected by General 
de Pevster. 



BURGOYNE AT FREEMAN\S FARM. 241 

General Burgoyne made his hcadqiuartcrs between the English and 
German troops on the heights at the left wing.' This was the new 
eamp at Freeman's farm. 

• 

During the period of inaction which now intervened, a part of the 
army, says the private journal of one of the officers, was so near to 
the Americans that "we could hear his morning and evening guns 
and other noises in his camp very distinctly, but we knew not in the 
least, where he stoocl, nor how he was posted, much less how strong 
he was. " " I'^'ndoubtedly,"' 7ra/ve/r ciddi^ tha Journal, -'a rare case in 
such a situation." 

Meanwhile, the work of fortifying the camp was continued and a 
place d' amies was laid out in front of the regiments and fortified with 
heavy batteries. During the night of the 2rst considerable shouting" 
was heard in the American camp. This, accompanied by the firing; 
of cannon, led the army to believe that some holiday was being cele- 
brated. Lamb also bears testimony to the close proximity of the 
Americans. "' We could," says that observant and exceedingly inter- 
esting writer, "distinctly hear the Americans felling and cutting 
trees, and they had a piece of ordnance, which they used to fire as a 
morning gun, so near us that the wadding struck against our works." 
On the 28th, a captured cornet, who had been allowed by Gates to go to 
the British camp for five days gave an explanation of the shoi;ting heard 
on the niglit of the 21st. This was that General Lincoln with a strong^ 
body of men composed of New Hampshire, Connecticut and Washing- 
ton county militia — the latter called out by the strenuous exertions of 
General Schuyler, although he was no longer in command — had at- 
tempted to surprise Ticonderoga and, though unsuccessful in that 
effort, had captured four companies of the 53d, together with an 

' The "Taylor House" (the foundations of which are on the river bank about one-fourth of a 
mile north of Wilbur's Hasin) has often been mistaken for the headquarters of Burgovne. The 
l^ruiisxvick Journal, however, is very explicit in statinjf that " Burgoyne camped between the 
Knglish and German troops of Riedesel on the heights at the left wing." This statement, more- 
over, receives additional confirmation in the following incident. On one of my visits to the bat- 
tleground, I pointed out to Mr. Wilbur (on whose land we were then standing), the place desig- 
nated by the liriins7vick Journal' s original maps as Burgoyne's Headquarters. "That," exclaimed 
Mr. Wilbur, "explains what I have often wondered at." He then stated that when he first 
plowed up that particular spot, he was accustomed to find great quantities of gin and wine bot- 
tles, and that until now, hf had often been puzzled to know "how on earth those bottles got 
there ' " 



242 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

armed brig and one batteau. Thus — singularly as it may appear — 
Burg03me was indebted to an enemy in his front for information res- 
pecting his own posts in his rear. 

But the action of the 19th had essentially diminished his strength, 
and his situation began to grow critical. His despatches were inter- 
cepted and his communications with Canada cut off by the seizure of 
the posts at Skenesborough (Whitehall) and at the head of Lake 
George. The pickets were more and more molested, the army was 
weakened by the sick and wounded and the enemy swarmed on its 
rear and flanks, threatening its strongest positions. In fact, the army 
was as good as cut off from its outposts, while in consequence of its 
close proximity to the American camp, the soldiers had but little rest. 
The nights, also, were rendered hideous by the howls of large packs 
of wolves that were attracted by the partially buried bodies of those 
slain in the action of the nineteenth. ' On the first of October a few 
English soldiers who were digging potatoes in a field a short distance 
in the rcai^ of headquarters within the camp, were surprised by the 
enemy who suddenly rushed from the woods and carried off the men 
in the very faces of their comrades." 

There were now only sufficient rations for sixteen days — all the 
supplies which Burgoyne had counted on as coming by way of 
Skenesborough and Fort Edward, being cut off — and foraging par- 
ties, composed of a large number of men were sent out daily. One of 
these parties met some militia from Washington County, near Green- 
wich, and were driven back with some loss. At length Burgoyne was 
obliged to cut down the ordinary daily rations to a pound of bread 
and a pound of meat, and, as he had heard nothing from Clinton he 
became seriously alarmed. Accordingly, on the evening of the 5th 
of October, he called a council of war. Riedesel and Eraser advised 
an immediate falling back to their old position, behind the Battenkill. 

^ The first two nights this noise was heard, General Fraser thoujrht it to have been the dogs 
belonging to the officers, and an order was given for the dogs to be confined within the tents. 
The next night the noise was much greater, when a detachment of Canadians and Provincials 
were sent out to reconnoiter, and it proved to have arisen from large droves of wolves that came 
after the dead. They were similar to a pack of hounds, for one setting up a cry, they all joined' 
and when they approached a corpse, their noise was hideous until they had scratched it up. 

In fact, Saratoga and vicinity seem to have been a great place for wolves. Amos Stafford, 
who settled on the bank of Fish Creek (.near Stafford's Bridge) about 1780, paid for his farm by 
the bounties he received from the wolves he shot. ' The rifle, with which he did such execution, 
was for several years in my possession. 

"^ Regarding this move in detail see Life 0/ Morgan. 



BURGOYNE RECONNOITERS. 243 

Phillips declined givinof an opinion and Burgoyne reserved his deci- 
sion until he had made a reconnoisance in force " to gather forage 
and ascertain definitely the position of the enemy, and whether it 
would be advisable to attack him."' Should the latter be the case, 
he w^ould, on the day following the reconnoissance, advance on the 
Americans with his entire army, but if not, he would march back to 
the Battenkill. ' 

At ten o'clock on the morning of October yth, liquor and rations 
having been previously issued to the army, Burgoyne, with fifteen 
hundred men, eight cannon and two howitzers, started on his recon- 
noissance, accompanied by Generals Riedesel, Phillips and Eraser. 
The Canadians, Indians and three hundred of Breymann's Brunswick- 
ers,- were sent ahead under Captain Eraser (not the General) to make 
a diversion in the rear of the Continentals. They succeeded in reach- 
ing a point a little in the rear of a log-barn (on the present " Neilson 
Earm " on Bemis Heights) which formed the extreme left of the 
American breastworks ; but they were speedily discovered and after a 
brisk skirmish of half an hour, were driven back, hotly pursued by 
the Americans, to within a short distance of the British line of battle 
which was then forming. 

The British advanced in three columns toward the left wing of the 
American position, entered a wheat field, deployed into line and 
began cutting up wheat for forage. The grenadiers, under Major 
Acland, and the artillerv under Major Williams, were stationed on a 
gentle eminence." The center w^as composed of British and German 
troops, under Phillips and Riedesel. In advance of the right wing, 
under the Earl of Balcarras, General Eraser had command of a de- 
tachment of five hundred picked men. The movement having been; 
seasonably discovered, the center advanced gfidrd of the Americans 
beat to arms. Colonel (afterwards General) Wilkinson, Gates's adju- 

' It would seem, from the extracts from the Brunswick Journal above quoted, as though Hur- 
Xoyne should have known pretty well the position of the Americans — but that is only one instance 
of his fatuitous course throughout the campaign. 

; 

" The statement of Bancroft and Irving that the Hessians bore the brunt of the battles of 

Freeman's Farm and Saratoga is erroneous. Only one Hessian regiment was in these actions — 
the rest being in Long Island and the Southern Department. 

' This eminence is now (iqoo) covered by an orchard, some two rods east of the road leading' 
from Quaker Springs to Stillwater, and twenty rods .southeast of the house formerlv occupied by 
Joseph Rogers. Fraser was shot midway between the orchard and Roger's house. A basswood 
tree, as well as a granite tablet, erected by Joseph W. Drexel, now marks the spot. This tree i.s 
a shoot out of the stump of the original tree that stood at the time when Fra.ser fell. 



244 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

tant-t^"eneral, beino- at headquarters at the moment, was dispatehed to 
ascertain the cause of the alarm. He proceeded to within. sixty rods 
of the enemy, and returning, informed Gates that the enemy were 
forag'ino-, attempting, also, to reconnoiter the American left, and like- 
wise, in his opinion, offering battle. In this view Generals Lincoln 
and Arnold, who had also reconnoitered the British lines, coincided. 
" What is the nature of the ground, and what is your opinion ? " asked 
Gates. " Their front is open," Wilkinson replied, "and their flank 
rests on woods, under cover of which they may be attacked; their 
right is skirted by a height; I would indulge them." "Well then," 
rejoined Gates, "order Morgan to begin the game." At his own sug- 
gestion, however, Morgan was allowed to gain the ridge on the ene- 
my's right b}' a circuitous course, while Poor's and Learned's brigades 
should attack his left. 

The movement was admirably executed. At half past two o'clock 
in the afternoon the New York and New Hampshire troops marched 
steadily up the slope of the knoll on which the British Grenadiers and 
artillery under Acland and Williams were stationed ; and for a moment 
there was an awful stillness — each party seeming to bid defiance to 
the other. At length the artillerymen and grenadiers began the action 
by a shower of grape, which passed over the heads of the Americans, 
who, in turn, rushed forward firing and opening to the right and left. 
Then again forming on the flanks of the grenadiers the}^ mowed them 
down at every step until the top of the hill was gained. Here a blood 
and hand struggle ensued which lasted about thirty minutes, when 
Acland being badly hurt, the grenadiers gave way leaving the ground 
thickly strewn with their dead and wounded. In this dreadful con- 
flict one field-piece that had been taken and retaken five times, finally 
fell into the hands of the Americans ; whereupon Colonel Eillery of 
Nevv^ Hampshire leaped upon the captured cannon, waved his sword 
and dedicated it "to the American cause," jumped down and, turning 
its muzzle, fired it on the British with the ammunition they had left 
behind. "The ground which had thus been occupied by the British 
Grenadiers," says Wilkinson in his memoirs, "presented a scene of 
complicated horror and exultation. In the square space of twelve or 
fifteen yards lay eighteen grenadiers in the agonies of death and three 
officers were propped up against stumps of trees, two of them mortally 
wounded, bleeding and almost speechless. A surgeon, a man of great 
worth, who was dressing one of the officers, raising his blood-be- 



BATTLE OF OCTOBER SEVENTH. 245 

smeared liands in a frenzy of patriotism, exelaimcd, ' Wilkinson, I 
liave dipped my hands in British blood! ' He received a sharp rebuke 
for his brutality, and, with the troops, I pursued the hard-pressed 
flyino' enemy. " 

While pursuing the retreating- grenadiers, Wilkinson heard a feeble 
voice exclaim, " Protect me, sir, against that boy." Turning his eyes 
he saw a lad taking deliberate aim at a wounded British officer, whom 
he at once knew to be Major Acland. Wilkinson quickly dismounted 
and taking him by the hand expressed the hope that he was not badl}' 
wounded. " Not badly," replied that gallant officer, "but ver}" in- 
conveniently, as I am shot through both legs. Will you, Sir, have 
the goodness to have me conveyed to your camp? " Wilkinson at 
once directed his servant to alight and, lifting the wounded man into 
the vacant seat, had him conve^-ed to headquarters. 

As soon as the action began on the British left, Morgan poured 
down like a torrent from the side and attacked Eraser so vigorously 
on his flank as to force him back to his lines. At this critical moment 
Major Dearborn ' arrived on the field with two regiments of New 
England troops, and delivered so galling a fire that the English gave 
way and fled in wild confusion. The brunt of the action now fell 
upon the Brunswickers, who alone had to sustain the impetuous onset 
of the Americans. 

Brigadier Eraser, who up to this time had been stationed on the 
right, noticed the critical situation of the center and hurried to its 
succor with the 24th regiment. Conspicuously mounted on an iron- 
grey horse, he was all activity and vigilance, riding from one part of 
the division to another, and animating the troops by his example. 
Perceiving that the fate of the day rested upon^'chat officer, Morgan, 
who, with his riflemen, was immediately opposed to Eraser's corps, 
took twelve of his sharpshooters aside, among whom was the cele- 
brated marksman, "Tim" Murphy — men on whose precision of aim 
he relied — and said to them: " The gallant officer yonder is General 
Eraser. I admire and respect him, but it is necessary for our good 
that he should die. Take your station in that cluster of bushes and 
do your duty." 

Within a few moments a rifle-ball cut the crouper of Eraser's horse, 
while another passed through his horse's mane. Calling his attention 

' Who afterward built F(jrt Dearborn, on the site of whicli Chicago is erected. 



246 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HLSTORY. 

to this, Fraser's aid said: "It is evident that you are marked out for 
particular aim ; would it not be prudent for you to retire from this, 
place?" Fraser replied, " my duty forbids me to fly from danger." 
The next moment he fell mortally wounded by a ball from the rifle of 
Murphy and was carried off the field by two grenadiers. 

Upon the fall of Fraser, dismay seized the British, while a corres- 
ponding elation took possession of the Americans. Up to this time 
Burgoyne had been in the thickest of the fight, and now finding him- 
self in danger of being surrounded, he abandoned his artillery,' and 
ordered a retreat to the "Great Redoubt." In the retreat the enemy 
left all their cannon on the field, except two howitzers, with a loss of 
more than four hundred men and among them the flower of Bur- 
goyne's officers, viz. : Fraser, Acland, Williams, Captain Money (who 
had distinguished himself so much at the Battle of Fort Anne) Deputy 
Ouartermaster-General, Sir Francis Clarke and many others. ■ 

The retreating troops had scarcely entered their lines when Arnold, 
notwithstanding he had been refused a command by Gates, placed 
himself at the head of the Continentals, and under a terrific fire as- 
saulted their works from right to left. " He behaved," says Samuel 
Woodruff, a sergeant in this battle, in a letter to my father, the late 
Colonel William L. vStone, "more like a madman than a cool and dis- 
creet officer." But if it were madness, there was "method in it."' 
With a part of Patterson s and Glover's Marblehead's brigades, he 
attacked, with the ferocity of a tiger, the Great Redoubt, and encoun- 
tering the light infantry of Balcarras, drove them at the point of the 
bayonet from a strong abattis within the redoubt itself.- Then spur- 
ring boldly on, exposed to the cross-fire of the two armies, he darted 
to the extreme right of the British camp. 



■ In this connection I cannot refrain from quoting a.s quite amusing:, an extract from the 
" Journal " of Pauch who had charge of the Hesse-Hanau artillery in this action. It is un- 
doubtedly to this retreat of the artillery mentioned in the te.xt that he writes: * * Finding 
myself alone, isolated and almost surrounded by the enemy, and with no way open, iny two can- 
non dismounted and deserted, I had no alternative but to make my way back to camp with great 
difficulty, if I did not wish to be stuck in a damned crooVied road." Pauch does not exaggerate it. 
The old wood-road, traces of which were visible up to the last twenty-five years, was almost 
serpentine in its cour.se. The use here of the preposition " in " instead of " on " probably refers 
to the inuddiness ai the road. 

' " vSo severe was the fighti'itr at this ptiint. that an old soldier who was in this fight, once told 
me that in the lower ground in front of the Redoubt, the biood and water was knee-deep." — jB. 
H- Freeman to the author. This also shows that the much vaunted idea that only British Sf)ldiers 
can wield the bayonet is humbug. Witness the present Boer war. 



GERMANS RETREAT. 247 

This rig-ht flank defense of the enemy was occupied by the Bruns- 
wick troops under Breymann, and consisted of a breastwork of rails 
piled horizontally between perpendicular pickets and extended two 
hundred yards across an open field to some hig-h ground on the right,' 
when it was covered by a battery of two guns. In front of the east 
work the ground declined in a gentle slope for a hundred yards when 
it sunk abruptly. The Americans had just formed a line under this 
declivity and were engaged with the Germans wdien, about sunset, 
Learned came up with his brigade. A slack fire was then observed in 
that part of the enemy's lines between the Germans and the light in- 
fantry, where were stationed the Provincials. 

This slack fire was owing to the fact that most of the Canadians 
were absent from their posts. Had they been at their places Riedesel 
thinks it would have been impossible for the left flank to have been 
surrounded. Be this as it may, the Canadians fled, leaving the Ger- 
man flank uncovered, and at the same moment Arnold, arriving from 
his attack on the "Great Redoubt," attacked the Brunswickers on their 
left flank and rear with such success, that the chivalric Breymann was 
killed and they themselves forced to retreat, leaving the key of the 
British position in the hands of the Americans. The advantage thus 
gained w^as retained by the Americans and darkness put an end to an 
action, equally brilliant and important to the Continental arms. Great 
numbers of the enemy were killed and two himdred prisoners taken. 
Burgoyne, himself,narrowly escaped, one ball having passed through 
his hat and another having torn his waistcoat. The loss of the Amer- 
icans was inconsiderable. 

In their final retreat the Brunswickers turned and delivered a part- 
ing volley, which killed Arnold's horse. Just at this moment a 
wounded Brunswacker fired at Arnold and wounded him in the same 
leg that had been injured by a musket ball at the storming of Quebec 
two years previously. A private by the name of John Redman, see- 
ing his general wounded, at once ran up to bayonet the offender, but 
was prevented by Arnold, who, with true chivalry, exclaimed, ''He's 
a fine fellow — don't hurt him." At this instant, while Arnold was 
striving to extricate himself from his saddle, Major Armstrong rode 
up and delivered to him an order from Gates to return to camp, fear- 
ing he " might do some rash thing." '' He indeed," says Mr. Lossing, 

' Now called Burgoyne's (Breymann's) Hill. See note anie. 



248 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

" did a rash thing- in the eyes of military discipline. He led troops to 
victory without an order from his commander." "It is a curious 
thing-,"" says Sparks, "that an officer, who had really no command in 
the army, was the leader in one of the most spirited and important- 
battles of the Revolution. His madness or rashness, or whatever it 
may be called, resulted most fortunately for himself. The wounds he 
received at the moment of rushing into the very arms of danger and 
death, added fresh lustre to his military glory and were a new claim to 
public favor and applause."' In the heat of the action, he struck an 
officer on the head with his sword and wounded him, an indignity 
which might justly have been retaliated on the spot and in the most 
fatal manner. The officer did, indeed, raise his gtm to shoot him, but 
he forbore and, on the next day, when he demanded redress, Arnold 
declared hisentire ignorance of the act and expressed his deep regret. 
Wilkinson ascribed his rashness to intoxication; but Major Armstrong, 
who, with Samuel Woodruff, assisted in removing him from the field, 
was satisfied that this was not the case.' Others ascribed it to opium. 
All this, however, is mere conjecture, unsustained by proofs of any 
kind, and consequently may be dismissed as improbable. His vagaries 
may, perhaps, be sufficiently explained by the extraordinary circum- 
stances of woimded pride, anger and desperation in which he was 
placed. But his actions were certainly rash, when compared with the 
stately method of the Commander-in-chief, (Gates), who directed by 
orders from his camp, what \i\'~> presoicc should have sanctioned in the 
field. 

Indeed, the conduct of Gates does not compare favorably either 
with that of his generals, or of his opponents. While Arnold and 
Burgoyne were in the hottest of the fight, boldl}^ facing danger and 
almost meeting- face to face. Gates, according to the statement of his 
Adjutant-General, was discussing- the merits of the Revolution with 
Sir Francis Clarke, Biirgoyne's aide-de-camp, who, wounded and a 
prisoner, was lying upon the commander's bed, seemingly more intent 
iipon winning the verba/, than the actual battle, (xates became in- 
censed because Sir Francis would not admit the force of. his argu- 
ment and, calling his aide out of the rooin, asked him if " he had ever 
li card so impudent a son of a bitch?"" A few days afterwards Sir 
Francis died. 

' .See Woodruff's letter to niv father in his " Life of Brant." 



NEWvS OF VICTORY. 249 

Gates has been suspected — and I think truly — of a lack of personal 
courage.' He certainly looked forward to a possible retreat, and 
while he cannot be censured for guarding- against every emergency, 
he, to say the least, was not animated by the same spirit which led 
Cortez to burn his ships behind him. At the beginning of the battle 
Quartermaster-General Lewis was directed to take eight men with 
hiin to the field to convey to (Tates information from lime to time con- 
cerning the progress of the action. At the same time, the baggage 
trains were all loaded up ready to move at a moment's notice.' The 
first information that arrived, represented the British troops to 
exceed the Americans and the trains were ordered to move on; but 
scarcely were th,ey under motion, when more favorable news was re- 
ceived, and the order was countermanded. Thus, they continued to 
move on and halt alternately until the joyful news — "The British 
have retreated " — rang through the camp, which reaching the atten- 
tive guard of the teamsters, the}' all with one accord swung their hats 
and gave three long and prolonged cheers. The glad tidings were 
transmitted with such rapidit}' from one to another that by the time 
the victorious troops had returned to their quarters, the American 
camp was thronged with inhabitants from the surrounding country 
and formed a scene of the greatest exultation. 

From the foregoing account, it will be seen that the term Battle of 
.5^'w?/.? //(f?>/2/5, -used to designate the action of October 7th is erron- 
eous and calculated to mislead. The original maps, which I have in 
my possession, having procured them in Germany in 1856, show- 
that the second engagement began on ground two hundred and twen- 
ty-five rods southwest of the site of the first (known as the Battle of 
Freeman's Farm) and ended on the savie c^ round on which this action 
was fought. The only interest, in fact, that attaches to Bemis's 
Heights — fully one mile and a quarter south of the battleground — is, 
that they were the headquarters of Gates during, and a short time 



' " I will Ijrintj the rascals back with me into line," exclaimed (lates. as the militia broke and' 
tied at Camden and, leaving Kalb to bear the brunt of the attack, he spurred after them, not. 
(Irawmg rein till he reached Charlotte, .sixty miles from the field of battle." Greene's Cerinan- 
F.leiiient in the War of the A vtericaji Re-noliiiion. 

- The heroic bronze statue of General Gates in the north niche of the Saratojja Monument at 
Schuylerville, N. Y., represents him as holding a spy-glass m one of hi.s hands. The committee 
having the matter in charge, put the spy-glass in especially to symbolize the conduct of Gates as 
noted in the text. 

[ :31 I 



250 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

previous, to the battle. This action of the 7th of October is called by 
writers on the subject, variously, the " Battle of Stillwater," " Bemis 
Heights " and " Saratoga." ' 

At 4 o'clock on the morning of the 8th, before daybreak, Burgoyne 
left his position, now utterly untenable, and defiled on to the 
meadows by the river where were his supply trains ; but was obliged 
to delay his retreat until the evening, because his hospital could not 
be sooner removed. He wished, also, to avail himself of the dark- 
ness. The Americans immediately inoved forward and took posses- 
sion of the abandoned camp. Burgoyne, having concentrated his 
forces upon some heights which were strong by nature, and covered 
by a ravine running parallel with the entrenchments of his late camp 
and the river, a random fire of artillery and small arms was kept up 
through the day, particularly on the part of the German chasseurs 
and the Provincials. The former, stationed in coverts of the ravine 
kept up an annoying fire upon every one crossing their line of vision, 
and it was by a shot from one of these lurking parties that General 
Lincoln was severely wounded in the leg while riding near the line. 
It was evident from the movements of the British that they were pre- 
paring to retreat; but the American troops, having, in the delirium 
of their joy consequent upon their victory, neglected to draw and eat 
their rations, and being withal not a little fatigued with their two 
days' exertions fell back to their camp which had been left standing 
in the morning. Retreat was, indeed, the only alternative left to the 
British commander, since it was now quite certain that he could not 
cut his way through the American army, and his supplies were re- 
duced to a short allowance for five days. 

Meanwhile, in addition to the chagrin of defeat, a deep gloom per- 
vaded the British camp. The gallant and beloved Fraser, the life 
and soul of the army, lay dying in the little farm^-house on the river 
bank occupied by Mrs. General Riedesel. 

General Fraser had been borne off the field supported by two sol- 
diers, one on each side of his horse. "When he arrived in camp," 
says Lainb, whom we have before so often quoted. ' ' the officers all 
anxiously inquired as to his wound, but the downcast look and melan- 
choly that were visible to every one too plainl)^ spoke his situation, 

' It may not, perhaps, be considered indelicate on my part, to state that I believe that my his- 
tory of these two battles— fortified by these maps and my researches in Germany — are generally 
considered by all historians as the authority on this subject. 



GENERAL ERASER'S DEATH. 251 

and all the answer he could make to the many enquiries, was a shake 
of his head, expressive that all was over with him. So much was he 
beloved, that even the women flocked round, solicitous for his fate. 
When he reached his tent and was recovered a little from the faint- 
ness occasioned by the loss of blood, he told those around him that he 
saw the man who shot him; he was a rifleman and aimed from a tree. 
After the surgeon had dressed his wound he said to him very coin- 
posedly, ' Tell me, to the best of your skill and judgment, if you think 
my wound is mortal ? ' When he replied, ' I am sorry, sir, to inform 
you that it is, and that you cannot possibly live more than twenty- 
four hours, ' the General called for a pen, ink and paper, and after 
making his will and distributing a few little tokens to the officers of 
his suite, desired that he might be removed to the general hospital." 

Mrs. General Riedesel, whose *' charming blue eyes, " General Wil- 
kinson says he has often seen bedimmed with tears at the recital of 
his sufferings — has described the last scene in the life of this unfortu- 
nate officer with such unaffected pathos, that I give it in her own words, 
simply premising that on the previous day she had expected Bur- 
goyne, Phillips and Eraser to dine with her after their return from 
the reconnoissance of the morning.' 

Mrs. Riedesel says: "About four o'clock in the afternoon, instead 
of the guests who were to have dined with us, they brought unto me, 
upon a litter, poor General Eraser mortally wounded. Our dining' 
table, which was alreadv spread, was taken away and, in its place 
they fixed up a bed for the General. I sat in the corner of the room 
trembling and quaking. * * * j heard him often, amidst his 
groans, exclaim, 'Oh fatal ambition! Poor General Burgoyne ! My 
poor wife ; * * * He then sent a message to General Burgoyne 
begging that he would have him buried the following da)^ at six 
o'clock in the evening on the top of a hill, which was a sort of a re- 
doubt. * * * About three o'clock in the morning they told me 
that he could not last much longer. I had desired to be apprised of 
the approach of this moment.. I accordingly, wrapped up my children 



' For a full and detailed account of this see my "Life of Mrs. General Riedesel." 
All war is dreadful, still it seems to me that this cold blooded shooting of Fraser by Murphy 
was no less than murder — j'et Murphy lived to be highly e.xtolled for this deed, and during the 
(lovernorship of Buck, of New York State, was sent to the Legislature. On the other hand, it 
may be argued that this cold blooded murder saved the lives of many soldiers. So, let it go ! Let 
each readei- iudge of it from his own ideas of right or wrong. 



252 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

in the coverings and went with them into the entry. Early in the 
morning-, at eight o'clock, he died." 

General Eraser belonged to the House of Lovatt, whose family 
name was Eraser. The Earl of Lovatt was one of the noblemen who 
were compromised by the rebellion of the last Stuart pretender and 
whose fortunes were reversed at the Battle of Culloden in 1746. 
General Eraser, a scion of the house, had received intimations (on 
being appointed to a command under Burgoyne) that if the enterprise 
wxre successful, the government would revoke the act of attainder, 
and restore to him the family estates. With a knowledge of these 
facts, it is easy to understand the meaning of the wounded general's 
exclamations as he lay w^aiting for death — the first alluding to the 
sad extinction of his own well cherished hopes of well earned position 
and renown; the second betraying his anxiety for his commander, 
whose impending disgrace he clearly foresaw. 

"We learned," continues Mrs. Riedesel, " that General Burgoyne 
intended to fulfill the last wish of General Eraser and to have him 
buried at six o'clock, in the place designated by him. This occasioned 
an unnecessary delay, to which a part of the misfortunes of the army 
was owing. The English chaplain, Mr. Brudewell, performed the 
funeral servnces. The cannon balls flew continually around and 
over the party.' The American General, Gates, afterward said that 
if he had known it was a burial he would not have allowed any firing 
in that direction. Many cannon balls also flew not far from me; but 
I had my eyes fixed upon the hill, when I distinctly saw my husband 
in the midst of the enemv's fire, and therefore, I could not think of 



' These shots were fired from the rising ground above the eastern shore in Washington Coun- 
ty, almost opposite the scene of the interment, and not, as some have thought, from " Willard's 
Mountain." This last (as it is in Washington County) is worthy of mention. It lies about three 
miles northeast of Wilbur's Basin and derives its name from the following fact. At the time 
that Burgoyne was encamped with his army near Wilbur's Basin, a man by the name of Willard 
took a spy-glass and went to the top of the mountain for the purpose of ascertaining, as near as 
possible, the number of the British troops, the situation of their camp, and to watch their move- 
ments and make his reports accordingly, by means of colored glass flashed by the sun to Gates. 
These reports were of much benefit to the Americans and from this circumstance the mountain 
has ever retained the name of " Willard's Mountain." 

The precise spot where Fraser was buried is now (1900) marked by two tall pines which stand 
like two grim sentinels, over the remains of the gallant general. The hill, on the top of which 
the latter was buried, stands some fort)- rods we.st of the river-road from Schuylerville to Still- 
water and about two hundred rods north of Wilbur's Basin. The Champlain canal passes close 
to its base. For an incident connected with the supposed removal of Fraser's remains to Eng- 
land, see my " Burgoyne's Campaign.'' 



BURGOYNE'S RETREAT. 253 

mv own dang-er." " Certainly," says General Riedesel in his Journal, 
" it was a real military funeral, one that was unique of its kind." 

General Burgoyne has himself described this funeral with his usual 
eloquence and felicity of expression. "The incessant cannonading 
during the solemnity, the steady attitude and unaltered voice with 
which the chaplain officiated, though frequently covered with dust, 
which the shot threw upon all sides of him, the mute but expressive 
mixture of sensibility and indignation upon the mind of every man 
who was present, the growing duskiness added to the scenery and the 
whole marked a character of that juncture that would make one of the 
finest subjects for the pencil of a master that the field ever exhibited, i 
To the canvas and to the faithful pen of a more important historian, 
g-aUant friend! I consign thy memory. There may thy talents^ thy 
manly virtues, their progress and their period find due distinction 
and long- may the}' survive, long after the frail record of my pen shall 
be forgotten! " ' 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

1777- 
BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN CONCLUDED. 

Burgoyne's Army Begin Their Retreat — The Heights of S.-\r.\to(;a Occupied, 
Thus Cutting Off all Hopes of Escape — Lady Acland's Fi.ujht to the Ameri- 
can Camp — Bukgoyne Surrenders — Incidents Connected with that Event — 
Madame Riedesel's Estimate of General Schuyler — Character of Burgoyne 
and Gates Compared — The General Result of the Surrender in Securing the 
Americans the French Alliance. 

As soon as the funeral services of General Eraser Avere finished — as 
narrated in the last chapter — an order was issued that the army should 

' This scene has been several times depicted by some of the best Enjjiish and American ar- 
tists. 

2 This is, of course, a very beautiful tribute — but, so far as relates to the chaplain (Brudenell) 
who officiated at Eraser's obsequies, the less .said of him the better. He was, from all accounts, 
a man whose habits brought disgrace upon all the English clergy, and I may as well state here 
that the tradition, that after her husband's death, he married Lady Acland, is entirely without 
foundation. See letter from Lord Carnarvon, late Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and a grand- 
nephew of Lady Acland, to myself. Vide my " Visits to the Saratoga Battle Grounds." 



254 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

retreat as soon as darkness had set in, and the Commander-in-chief, 
who in the beg-inning of the campaign, had vauntingly given out in 
general orders that memorable sentiment, "Britons never retreat," 
was now compelled to steal away in the night, leaving his hospital 
containing four hundred and sixty sick and wounded, to the mercy of 
a victorious and hitherto despised enemy. Gates in this, as in all 
other instances, extended to his former companion in arms on the 
Monongahela, the greatest humanity. 

The army began its retrograde movement at nine o'clock on the 
evening of the 8th in the midst of a pouring rain, Riedesel leading 
the van, and Phillips bringing up the rear with the advanced corps. 
All deplored the loss of Fraser, who had always shown as great skill 
in managing a retreat as bravery in leading an attack. Indeed, he 
used frequently to say that if the army had the misfortune to retreat, 
he would ensure, with the advanced corps, to bring it off in safety. 
This was a piece of generalship of which he was not a little vain, hav- 
ing, during the " Seven Year's War," made good his retreat with five 
hundred chasseurs in sight of the French army. 

In this retreat, the same lack of judgment on the part of General 
Burgoyne is apparent. Had General Burgoyne. as Riedesel advised, 
fallen immediately back across the Hudson where is now a part of 
Washington County, and taken up his former position behind the 
Battenkill, not only would his comiuunications with Lakes George 
and Champlain and Canada have been restored, but he could, at his 
leisure, have awaited the movements of Clinton. Burgoyne, however, 
having arrived at Dovegat's house, two hours before daybreak on the 
morning of the 9th, gave the order to halt, greatly to the surprise of 
his whole army. " Every one," says Riedesel in his Journal, "was, 
notwithstanding, then of the opinion, that the anny would make but 
a short stand, merely for its better concentration, as all saw that haste 
was of the utmost necessity, if they would get out of a dangerous 
trap." 

At this time the heights of Saratoga, commanding the ford across 
Fish Creek, were not yet occupied by the Americans in force, and up 
to seven o'clock in the morning, the retreating army might easily 
have reached the place and thrown a bridge across the Hudson. Gen- 
eral Fellows, who, by the orders of Gates, occupied the heights at 
Saratoga opposite the ford, was in an extremely critical situation. On 
the night of the 8th, Lieutenant-Colonel vSoutherland, who had been 



LADY ACLAND'S HEROISM. 255 

sent forward to reconnoiter, crossed Fish Creek and, guided by Gen- 
eral Fellow's fires, found his camps so entirely unguarded that he 
marched around it without being challenged. He then returned and 
reporting to Burgoyne, entreated permission to attack Fellows with 
his regiment, but was refused. " Had not Burgoyne halted at Dove- 
gat," says Wilkinson, "he must have reached vSaratoga before day in 
which case Fellows would have been cut rip and captured or dispensed 
and Burgoyne 's retreat to Fort Edward and Fort George would have 
been unobstructed. As it was, however. Burgoyne's army reached 
Saratoga just as the rear of our militia was ascending the opposite 
[i. e. the eastern] bank of the Hudson, where they took post and pre- 
vented its passage." Burgoyne, however, although within half an 
hour's march of Saratoga, gave the siirprising order that "the army 
should bivouac in two lines, and await the da5^" 

Mr. Bancroft — who, notwithstanding his reputation as an historian, 
is often exceedingly superficial — ascribes this delay to the fact that 
Burgoyne "was still clogged with his artillery and baggage, and that 
the night was dark and the roads weakened by rain." But according 
to the imiversal testimony of all the manuscript journals extant, the 
road which up to this time was sufficiently strong for the passage of 
the baggage and artillery trains, became, during the halt, so bad by 
the continued rain, that when the army again moved at four o'clock 
in the afternoon, it was obliged to leave behind the tents and camp 
equipage, which fell, most opportunely, into the hands of the Ameri- 
cans. Aside, however, from this, it is a matter of record that the 
men, through their officers, pleaded with Burgoyne to be allowed to 
proceed, notwithstanding the storm and darkness ; while the officers 
themselves pronoimced the delay "madness." But whatever were 
the motives of the English general, this delay lost him his army and, 
perhaps, the British crown her American Colonies. 

During the halt at Dovegat's, there occurred one of those incidents 
which relieve with fairer lights and softer tints the gloomy pictures 
of war. Lady Harriet Acland had, like the Baroness Riedesel, ac- 
comipanied her husband to America and gladly shared with him the 
vicissitudes of campaign life. Major John Dyke Acland was a rough, 
blunt man, but a gallant soldier and devoted husband and she loved 
him dearly. She had already been subjected to great inconvenience 
and distress before the army arrived at Saratoga. She had been dis- 



250 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

tinguished by her devotion and unremiLting- attention to her husband, 
when he lay sick at Chamblee in a miserable hnt. She was, indeed, 
not only the idol of her husband, but, together with the Baroness 
Riedesel, shared the admiration of the whole army, continually mak- 
ing little presents to the ofificers belonging to the Major's corps, 
whenever she had anything among her stores that she thought would 
gratify them. In return she received from them every attention 
which could mitigate the hardships she daily encountered and now, 
ever since he had been wounded and taken prisoner in the action of 
the 7th, she had been in sore distress; and it had required all the com- 
forting attentions of the Baroness to reassure her. As soon as the 
army halted, by the advice of the latter, she determined to visit the 
Ainerican tamp, and implore the permission of its commander to join 
her husband, and by her presence alleviate his sufferings. 

Accordingl}^ on the 9th, she requested pei'mission of Burgoyne to 
depart. "Though I was ready to believe," says that General in his 
trial by Parliament, " that patience and fortitude in a supreme degree 
were to be found, as well as every other virtue, under the most tender 
fonns, I was astonished at this proposal. After so long an agitation 
of spirits, exhausted not only for want of rest, but absolutely want of 
food, drenched in rains for twelve hours together, that a woman 
should be capable of such an undertaking as delivering herself to an 
enemy, probably in the night and uncertain of what hands she might 
fall into, appeared an effort above human nature. The assistance I 
was able to give was small indeed. All I could furnish to her was an 
open boat and a few lines, written upon dirty wet paper to General 
Gates, recommending her to his protection." ' 

In the midst of a driving autumnal storm and wuth nothing but a 
little spirits and water, obtained from the wife of a soldier, to sustain 
her. Lady Acland set out at dusk in an open boat for the American 
camp, accompanied by Rev. Mr. Brudeweil, the chaplain — the same 
who had officiated at the burial of (General Fraser — her waiting-maid 
and her husband's valet. At ten o'clock they reached the American 
advanced guard under the command of Major Henry Dearborn. Lady 
Acland, herself, hailed the sentinel and, as soon as the bateau struck 
the shore the party were immediately conve3'ed into the l(~)g cabin of 

' Nor wa.s it in the higher walks of life, only, that female heroi.sm and conjugal devotion were 
displayed. In proof of this, the reader will recall Sergeant Lamb's account of his trip to Lake 
George to obtain supplies, some pages back. 



BURGOYNE WITHDRAWS BEYOND FISH CREEK. 257 

the Major, who had been ordered to detain the flag until the morn- 
ing, the night being exceedingly dark and the qiiality of the lady 
unknown. ' Major Dearborn gallantly gave up his room to his guest, 
a fire was kindled, a cup of tea provided, and as soon as Lady Acland 
made herself known, her mind was relieved from its anxiety by the 
assurance of her husband's safety. " I visited," says Wilkinson, " the 
guard before sunrise. Lady Acland's boat had put off and was float- 
ing down the stream to our camp, v/here General Gates, whose gal- 
lantry will not be denied, stood ready to receive her with all the ten- 
derness and respect to which her rank and condition gave her a claim. 
Indeed, the feminine, figure, the benign aspect and polished manners 
of this charming woman, were alone sufficient to attract the sympathy 
of the most obdurate ; but if another motive could have been wanting 
to inspire respect, it was furnished by the peculiar circumstances of 
Lady Harriet, then in that most delicate situation, which cannot fail 
to interest the solicitude of every being possessed of the form and 
feelings of a man." The kindness which had been shown to his wife. 
Major Acland reciprocated, while on parole in New York, by -doing 
all in his power to mitigate the sufferings of the American prisoners.'' 
On the evening of the 9th, the main portion of the drenched and 
weary army forded Fish Creek waist deep and bivouacked in a 
wretched position in the open air on the opposite bank. Burgoyne 
remained on the south side of the creek, with Hamilton's brigade as a 
guard and passed the night in the mansion of General Schuyler. The 
officers slept on the ground with no other covering than oilcloth. Nor 
did their wives fare better. " I was wet," says the Baroness Riedesel, 
" through and through by the frequent rains and was obliged to remain 
in this condition the entire night, as I had no place whatever, where 
I could change my linen. I asked General Phillips why we did not 
continue our retreat ? ' Poor woman,' answered he, ' I am amazed at 

' Ainonji the bronze tablets in the Saratoga Monument there is one representing Lady Acland 
l^roceeding to the American camp. The picture of Lady Acland is from a portrait by Sir Joshua 
Reynolds, a photograph of which was sent me, for this purpose, by my friend, the late Lord Car- 
narvon, (Lieutenant-Cieneral of Ireland) who was, as before stated, the grand nephew of Lady 
Acland. Lady Carnarvon recently sent me a contemporaneous print showing the voyage of her 
great-aunt by marriage, going to the camp of Burgoyne. It is a remarkable one and, as I have 
said before, in speaking of my various original documents, should anj^ reader wish to see this 
print, I shall be very happy to show it to him. 

- As everything connected with this devoted wife must be of interest, the reader is referred 
to my '■ Burgoyne"s Expedition " appendi.x No. VII for some particulars of her after life. 

[32] 



258 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

you ! completely wet through, have you still the courage to wish to 
go further in this weather ? Would that you were our commanding 
general ! He halts because he is tired and intends to spend the night 
here and give us a supper! 

Burgoyne, however, would not think of a further advance that 
night; and while his army were suffering from cold and hunger and 
every one was looking forward to the immediate future with appre- 
hension, "the illuminated mansion of General Schuyler, " says the 
" Brunswick Journal," " rang with singing, laughter and the jingling 
of glasses. There, Burgoyne was sitting with some merry compan- 
ions, at a dainty supper, while the champagne was flowing. Near 
him sat the beautiful wife of an English commissary, his mistress.' 
Great as the calamity was, the frivolous general still kept up his 
orgies. Some were even of the opinion that he had merely made 
that inexcusable stand for the sake of passing a merry night. Riede- 
sel thought it his duty to rem.ind his general of the danger of the halt 
but the latter returned all sorts "of evasive answers." This state- 
ment is corroborated by Madame Riedesel who also adds, "the fol- 
lowing day General Burgoyne repaid the hospitable shelter of Schuy- 
ler's mansion by burning it, with its valuable barns and mills to the 
ground, under pretence that he might be better able to cover his 
retreat ; but f//;^;'^ say, out of mean revenge on the American Gen- 
eral." Let us, however, do justice. Lamb, who was present at the 
time of the fire claims, on the contrary, that the burning of the barns 
was purely accidental and of the house, the result of military necessi- 
ty. 

But the golden moment had fled. On the following morning, the 
loth, it was discovered that the Americans, under Fellows, were in 
possession of the Battenkill, on the eastern side of the Hudson, and 
Burgoyne, considering it too hazardous to attempt the passage of the 
river, ordered the army to occupy the same quarters on the heights of 
Saratoga, which they had used on first crossing the river on the 13th 
of September. At the same time he sent ahead a working party to 

' Were this statement made by Mrs. Riedesel onl}-— for she states the same thing— instead ul' 
by the "Brunswick Journal," it might be necessary to receive it with caution, since her preju- 
dices sometimes, unintentionally led her into extremes. Mr. Fonblanque, I^wever, in his admir- 
able, though too partial Life aitd Correspondence of General Burgoyne, admits this by implication, 
but seeks to leave the impression that the champagne and the •' flirtation," as he calls it, were 
indulged in by the British general to relieve the mental agony consequent upon his defeat. This 
may be SO, but how about all of his oificers who were left out " in the cold " on that occasion ? 



BRITISH REPULSE NIXON AND GLOVER. 259 

Fort Edward, his intention being to continue his retreat along the 
west bank of the Hudson river to the front of that fort, force a pas- 
sage across, and take possession of that post. Colonel Cochran, how- 
ever, had already garrisoned it with two hundred men and Burgoyne's 
detachment hastily fell back to his camp. 

Meanwhile, General Gates, who had begun the pursuit at noon of 
the loth with his main army, reached the high ground south of Fish 
Creek, at four the same afternoon. The departure of Burgoyne's 
working party for Fort Edward led him to believe that the entire 
British army were in full retreat, having left only a small guard to 
protect their baggage. Acting upon this impression, he ordered Nixon 
and Glover, with their brigades, to cross the creek under cover of the 
fog which at this time of the year usually prevails till after sunrise 
and attack the British camp. The English general had notice of this 
plan, and placing a battery in position, he posted his troops in ambush 
behind the thickets along the banks of the creek,' and concealed also 
Ijy the fog, awaited the attack confident of victory. At early daylight, 
Morgan, who had again been selected to begin the action, crossed the 
creek with his men, on a raft of floating logs, and falling in with a 
British picket, was fired upon, losing a lieutenant and two privates. 
This led him to believe that the main body of the enemy had not 
moved, in which case, with the creek in his rear, enveloped by a dense 
fog and imacquainted with the ground, he felt his position to be most 
critical. Meanwhile, the whole army advanced as far as the south 
bank of. the creek and halted. Nixon, however, who was in advance, 
had already crossed the stream near its confluence with the Hudson, 
and captured a picket of sixty men, and a number of bateaux, and 
(xlover, with his Marblehead regiment, was preparing to follow him, 
when a deserter from the enemy confirmed the suspicions of Morgan. 
This was corroborated a few moments afterwards, by the capture of a 
reconnoitering party of thirt3^-five men by the advanced guard under 
Captain Goodale of Putnam's regiment, who, discerning them through 
the fog just as he neared the opposite bank, charged and took them 
without firing a gun. (lates was at this time at his headquarters, a 
mile and a half in the rear,' and before intelligence could be sent to 

' 'I'his precise spot is about three rods east of Victory .Mills. 

- This seems to have been the normal position of that i^eneral whenever any rt.i^hting was 
^^oing on. 



260 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

him the fog cleared up and exposed the entire British army under 
arms. A heavy fire of artillery and musketry was immediately opened 
upon Nixon's brigade, and they retreated in considerable disorder 
across the creek. 

General Learned had, in the meantime, reached Morgan's corps 
with his own and Patterson's brigade, and was advancing rapidly to 
the attack, in obedience to a standing order issued the day before, 
' ' that in case of an attack against any point, whether in front flank 
or rear, the troops are to fall upon the enemy at all quarters." He 
had arrived within two hundred yards of Burgoyne's battery, and in a 
few minutes more, would have been engaged at great disadvantage, 
when Wilkinson reached him with the news that the right wing under 
Nixon had given way, and that it would be prudent to retreat. The 
brave old general hesitated to comply. " Our brethren," said he, " are 
engaged on the right, and the standing order is to attack." 

In this dilemma Wilkinson exclaimed to one of Gates' aides stand- 
ing near, "Tell the general that his own fame and the interests of 
the cause are at hazard; that his presence is necessary with the 
troops." Then, turning to Learned, he continued, "our troops on the 
right have retired, and the fire you hear is from the enemy ; although 
I have no orders for your retreat, I pledge my life for the general's 
approbation." By this time several field officers had joined the 
group, and a consultation being held, the proposition to retreat was 
approved. Scarcely had they turned about when the enemy, who, 
expecting their advance, had been watching their movements with 
shouldered arms, fired and killed an officer and several men before 
they made good their retreat. 

Had the plan of the English general succeeded, it is difficult to say 
what might have been the result. With the brigades of Nixon, Glover, 
Learned and Patterson cut off, and with the consequent demoraliza- 
tion of the American army, his retreat would have been rendered less 
difficult, or retracing his steps, he might possibly have entered Albany 
in triumph. He himself, called it, in his trial in Parliament, "one of 
the most adverse strokes of fortune during the campaign." 

The ground occupied by the two armies after this engagement, 
resembled a vast amphitheatre — the British occupying the arena and 
the Americans the elevated surroundings. Burgoyne's camp, upon 
the meadows and the heights of Saratoga north of Fish Creek, was 
fortified and extended half a mile parallel with the river, most of its 



BRITISH HEMMED IN. 2G1 

heavy artillery being on an elevated plateau, northeast of the present 
village of Schiiylerville. On the American side, Morgan and his 
sharpshooters were posted on still higher ground west of the British, 
extending along their entire rear. On the east or opposite bank of 
the Hudson (what is now a portion of Washington County) Fellows, 
with three thousand men, was strongly entrenched behind heavy bat- 
teries; while Gates, with the main body of the Continentals, lay on 
the high ground south of Fish Creek and parallel with it. On the 
north. Fort Edward was held b}^ Stark with two thousand men, and 
between that post and Lake George in the vicinity of Glens Falls, the 
Americans had a fortified camp; while, from the surrounding coimtry 
{and especially from Washington County) large bodies of yeomanry 
flocked in, and voluntarily posted themselves up and down the river. 
The "trap" which Riedesel had foreseen, was already sprung! 

The Americans, impatient of delay, iirged Gates to attack the 
British camp, but that general, now assured that the surrender of Bu'r- 
goyne was only a question of time, and unwilling needlessly to sacri- 
fice his men, refused to accede to their wishes, and quietly awaited 
the course of events. 

The beleaguered army was now constantly imder fire both on its 
flanks and rear and in the front. The outposts were continually en- 
gaged with those of the Americans, and many of the patrols, detached 
to keep up communication between the center and right wnng, were 
taken prisoners. The captured bateaux were of great use to the 
Americans, who were now enabled to transport troops across the 
river at pleasure, and reinforce the posts on the road to Fort Edward. 
Every hour the position of the British grew more desperate, and the 
prospect of escape less. There was no place of safety for the baggage 
and the ground was covered with dead horses that had been killed by 
the enemy's round shot and bullets, or by exhaustion, as there had 
been no forage for four days. Even for the wounded there was no 
spot that could afford a safe shelter, while the surgeon was binding 
up their wounds. In fact, the entire camp became a scene of constant 
fighting. The soldier dare not lay aside his arms night or day, ex- 
cept to exchange his gun for a spade, when new entrenchments were 
to be thrown up. He was also debarred of water, although close to 
Fish Creek and the river, it being at the hazard of his life in the day 
time to get any, from the number of sharpshooters Morgan had posted 
in trees, and at night he was svire to be taken prisoner if he attempted 



262 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

it. All the water accessible was from a muddy spring-, and what 
could be obtained out of the holes the cattle made with their feet, 
while by way of luxury, when it rained hard, the men used to catch it 
in their caps to mix their flour. Without tents to shelter them from 
the heavy and incessant rains, the sick and wounded would drag^ 
themselves along into a quiet corner of the woods and lie down and 
die upon the damp ground. Nor were they safe even here, since 
every little while a ball would come crashing down among the trees. 
The few houses that were at the foot of the heights were nearest to 
the fire from Fellow's batteries at the mouth of the Battenkill, not- 
withstanding which the wounded officers and men crawled hither, 
seeking protection in the cellars.' 

In one of these cellars the Baroness Riedesel ministered to the suf- 
ferers like an angel of light and comfort. She made them broth, 
dressed their wounds, purified the atmosphere b}^ sprinkling vinegar 
on hot coals, and was ever ready to perform an}' friendly service — 
even such from which the sensitive nature of a woman would recoil. 
Once, while thus engaged, a furious cannonade was opened upon the 
house from Fellow's batteries under the impression that it was the 
headquarters of the English commander. "Alas," says Madame 
Riedesel, "it harbored none but wounded men and women.'" Eleven 
cannon balls went through the house and those in the cellar could 
plainly hear them crashing through the walls overhead. One poor 
fellow by the name of Jones, a British surgeon, whose leg they were 
about to amputate in the room above, had his other leg taken off by 
one of the cannon balls in the very middle of the operation." Often 
(leneral Riedesel wished to withdraw his wife from danger by send- 

' This cellar is underneath the " Marshall House," two miles north of Schuylerville and di- 
rectly opposite the mouth of the Battenkill whence the shots were fired. With the e.xception of a 
recent addition, the house is the same (igoo) as when it was shelled by Fellow's batteries. In this 
connection I maj^ say, that the ball which passed through the surgeon's |eg (Jones) as mentioned 
a little further on is now in my possession, and if any curious reader would like to see it, I would 
be happy to show it to him, if he should call on me at Mt. Vernon, N. V. 

- An almost similar incident occurred during our late Civil War. In the naval battle, June 
iq, 1864, between the ''Kearsarge" and the "Alabama," as Assistant Surgeon Llewellyn of the 
latter vessel was seeing to the wounded in the ward-room, his table and a patient lying upon it 
were swept away fromhim by an eleven inch shell, which opened in the side of the ship an aper- 
ture that fast filled the ship with water. See Centiwy Magazine for April, i885. 

The veritable cannon-ball (a 12-pounder) which took off Jones's leg, is in my cabinet of relics 
from the Saratoga Battlegrounds, and is seen by me while I write this. It was very kindly given 
me by Mrs. Sample, who now owns and occupies the "Marshall House." This cannon-ball entered 
the northeast corner of the wall of the house, and the hole made by it was still visible until re- 
cently. 



DEMORALIZATION IN BRITISH CAMP. 2G3 

mg her to the American camp, but the latter remonstrated with him 
on the gTouncl that to be with people whom she would be obliged to 
treat with courtesy, while, perhaps, he was being- killed, would be 
even yet more painful than all that she was then forced to endure. 
The greatest suffering was experienced by the wounded from thirst,' 
which was not relieved until a soldier's wife volunteered to bring 
water from the river. This she continued to do with with safet}^ the 
Americans gallantly withholding their fire whenever she appeared. 

]\Ieanwhile, order grew more and more lax, and the greatest misery 
prevailed throughout the entire arm3^ The commissaries neglected 
to distribute provisions among the troops, and, although there were 
cattle still left, not one had been killed. More than thirty officers 
came to the Baroness for food, forced to this step from sheer starva- 
tion, one of them, a Canadian, being so weak as to be unable to stand. 
She divided among them all the provisions at hand, and having- ex- 
hausted her store without satisfying them, in an agony of despair, 
she called to Adjutant-General Petersham, one of Burgoyne's aides 
who chanced to be near her, and said to him passionatelv, " Come and 
see for yourself these officers who have been wounded in the common 
cause and are in want of everything that is due them. It is your duty 
to make a representation of this to the general." A quarter of an 
hoiir afterward, Burgoyne himself, came to Mrs. Riedesel, and 
thanked her for reminding him of his duty. In reply, she apologized 
for meddling with things she well knew, were out of a woman's pro- 
vince, still, it was impossible, she said, for her to keep silent, when 
she saw so many brave men in want of food, and had nothing more to 
give them. "Thereupon," says the Baroness, "he thanked me once 
more (though I believe in his heart, he has never forgiven me the 
lashing I gave him) and went away from me to the officers, and said 
to them that he was very sorry for what had happened, but why had 
they not come to him, as his cook was always at their service? " They 
replied, that English officers were not accustomed to visit the kitchen 
of their general, and that the}" had "gratefully received every morsel 
from Mrs. Riedesel as they felt that she gave it to them directly from 
her heart." 

On the afternoon of the 12th, Burgoyne held a consultation with 

' I have seen it stated, that jjunshot wounds always create unusual thirst. 



264 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Riedesel, Phillips, and the two brigadiers, Hamilton and Gall, to 
whom he submitted the choice of the following courses: 

^^ First. To wait in the present position an attack from the enemy, 
or the chance of favorable events." 

" Second. To attack the enemy." 

" Third. To retreat, repairing the bridges, as the army moves, for 
the artillery, in order to force the passage of the ford." 

''Fourth. To retreat by night, leaving the artillery and the bag- 
gage, and should it be found impracticable to force the passage with 
musketry, to attempt the upper-ford [Fort Edward] or the passage 
round Lake George." 

" Fifth. In case the eneiny, by extending to their left, leave their 
rear open, to march rapidly upon Albany." 

The want of provisions rendered the first proposition inadmissable ; 
while to break through the superior numbers of an enemy strongly 
posted and entrenched in every point was desperate and hopeless. In 
view of these facts, Riedesel strongly urged the adoption of the fourth 
proposition and suggested that the baggage should be left and a re- 
treat begun on the west side of the Hudson, and. as Fort Edward had 
just been reinforced by a strong detachment of the Americans, he 
further proposed to cross the river four miles above that fort and con- 
tinue the march to Ticonderoga through the woods, leaving Lake 
George on the right — a plan which was then feasible, as the road on 
the west bank of the river had not 3'et been occupied b}- the enemy. 
This proposition was approved, and an order was issued that the re- 
treat should be begun by ten o'clock that night. But when every- 
thing was in readiness for the march, Burgoyne, with his usual inde- 
cision, suddenly changed his mind and postponed the movement until 
the next day,' when an unexpected manoeuver of the Americans made 
it impossible. During the night, the latter crossing the river on rafts 
near the Battenkill " erected a heavy battery on an eminence nearly 
opposite the mouth of that stream and on the left flank of the army, 
thus making the investment complete.'' 

' Very likely, so as to have one more merry evening with his mistress and boon companions. 

^ The Dutch word A'/V, meaning a channel, is often used for creek, and always erroneously 
printed Kill. It is not unusual to meet in American works with such an anomaly, for instance, 
as Batten Kill Creek. 

' The fact of the erection of this battery seems to have escaped the notice of almost every 
writer upon the subject. The planting of it, however, was, as is shown in the text, of vital im- 
portance to the complete success of the Americans. 



BURGOYNE PROPOSES CESSATION OF ARMS. 265 

Biirgoyne was now entirely surrounded, the desertion of his Indian 
and Canadian, and many of his German allies,' and his losses in killed 
and wounded had reduced his army one-half; there was not food 
sufficient for five days, and not a word had been received from Clin- 
ton. Accordingly, on the 13th he again called a general council of 
all his officers, including even the captains of companies. The cotm- 
cil were not long in deciding, unanimously, that a treaty should be at 
once opened with General Gates for an honorable surrender — their 
deliberations being doubtless hastened by rifle balls perforating the 
tent in which they were assembled, and an 18-pound cannonball 
sweeping across the table at which Burgoyne and his generals and 
captains were seated. 

Accordingly, the following day, the 14th, General Burgoyne sent 
Lieutenant-Colonel Kingston to the headquarters of General Gates 
with a proposition for " a cessation of arms, during the time necessary 
to communicate the preliminary terms, by which, in any extremity he 
and the army mean to abide." Lieutenant-Colonel Kingston was met 
by Adjutant-General Wilkinson on the banks of Fish Creek and con- 
ducted blindfolded to the American headquarters. 

General Gates, upon the reception of this communication, author- 
ized a cessation of arms until sunset, and having already prepared 
a schedule of the terms upon which he was prepared to treat, for- 
warded them by Kingston to Burgoyne. This schedule evinced that 
the American general was well acquainted with the distresses of the 
British, and was drawn up in terms of extreme liberality. It did not, 
however, satisfy Burgoyne, who returned it with his comments — 



' In justice to Burgoyne it should be stated that the chief cause of the desertion of his Indian 
allies was the fact, that they were checked by him in their scalping and plundering of the un- 
armed. 

Regarding, however, the desertion of the Germans, many availed themselves of this oppor- 
tunity to settle on good farms in the northern portion of New York. There is even yet (igoo) 
standing, near the late Hon. John B. Raskin's place on Friend's Lake, near Chestertown, Warren 
County, N. Y., the foundations of the cabin of a German deserter from Burgoyne's army, who 
settled there in the fall of 1777. The cabin was built in 1783. as the figures cut in the stone lintel 
above the fireplace attest. Hon. Charles H. Faxon, of Chestertown, a gentleman whose patriotic 
tastes are well known, did his best to have this cabin bought by the State of New York, and pre- 
served as an "heir-loom" for the county. But our wise Legislature— much more interested in 
political jobs— no matter under which machine "boss" they are carried on— found no time to 
attend to this suggestion of Mr. Faxon. And, why, pray, should they ? When there was no vtoney 
in it for those of our Legislators— be they Republicans or Democrats— who are working "for their 
pockets all the time ! " Shame on such men who represent us in the Legislature ! 

r 33 ] 



26G WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Lieutenant-Colonel Kingston, who delivered it, adding- the following 
message : 

" If General Gates does not mean to recede from the sixth article, 
the treaty ends at once. The arni}^ will, to a man, proceed to any act 
of desperation rather than submit to that article.' Finally, after much 
discussion over the articles of the treaty, Burgoyne wrote to Gates 
that " Lieutenant-General Burgoyne is willing to appoint two officers 
immediately, to meet two others from Major-General Gates, to pro- 
pound, discuss and settle these subordinate articles, in order that the 
treaty in due form may be executed as soon as possible." 

This meeting took place on the afternoon of the 15th, and the par- 
ties mutually signed articles of capitulation, or Convention, as Bur- 
goyne wished to have it designated. A copy of the Convention was 
to be formally signed by the English General and delivered the next 
morning. Meanwhile, during the night, a provincial arrived from 
below, who stated that he had heard through a third party that Clin- 
ton had captured the forts on the Hudson Highlands, and had arrived 
at .^sopus eight days previously; and further, that by this time he 
was very likely at Albany. Burgoyne was so encouraged by this 
news, that he once more called together a council of war and laid 
before it the following questions: 

First. Whether a treaty which was about being completed by his 
deputies, and which he, himself, had promised to sign, could be 
broken? Fourteen votes against eight decided this question in the 
negative. 

Second. Whether the report of a man whom nobod}^ knew was 
sufficient, in our present situation, to justify our refusal of so advan- 
tageous a treaty ? The same number of votes decided this also in the 
negative. 

Third. Whether the common soldiers possessed sufficient spirit to 
defend the present position of the anny to the last man ? All the 
officers of the left wing answered this in the affirmative. Those of 
the center and right wings gave a similar answer provided the enemy 
were attacked; but the men were too well acquainted with their defec- 
tive positions to display the same bravery in case they were them- 
selves attacked." 

' This article was as follows : 

" Article VI. These terms being agreed to and signed, the troops under his E.vcellency's, 
General Burgoyne's command, may be drawn up in their encampments, when they w^ill be or- 
dered to ground their arms, and may, thereupon, be marched to the river side on their way to 
Bennington." 



BURGOYNE HESITATES TO CAPITULATE. 267 

But, notwithstandiiiif these votes, Biirg-oyne was resolved, as the 
articles of capitulation were not 3^et signed, to repudiate the informal 
arrangement with Gates; and in order to gain time, he informed him 
by letter that he had been told by deserters and other reliable persons 
that he had sent a considerable corps of his army toward Albany, and 
that this being contrary to all faith, he (Burgoyne) could not give his 
signatvire without being convinced that the American army outnum- 
bered his own by at least three or four to one; Gates should, there- 
fore, name an officer of his army who might see for himself the num- 
ber of the enemy; and should Burgoyne, after hearing this officer's 
report, be convinced of the superior number of the Americans, he 
would at once sign the treaty. General Gates received this letter 
with considerable nonchalance, but replied that he would give his word 
of honor that his army was just as strong now as it was previous to 
the treaty, and that having since then been re-inforced by a few bri- 
gades, it certainly did outnumber the English four to one, and this, 
too, without counting those troops that were on the other side of the 
Hudson and at Half-Moon. He also gave Burgoyne to understand 
what it meant to break his word of honor, and offered to show his 
whole army to him after the latter had signed the treaty, when he 
would find that everything he had stated was true. Being, moreover, 
in no mood for temporizing, he drew up his troops in order of battle 
at early dawn of the next day, the lyth, and informed Burgoyne in 
plain terms, that he must either sign the treaty, or prepare for imme- 
diate battle. Riedesel and Phillips added their persuasions, repre- 
senting to him that the news just received was mere hearsa}^; but 
even if it were true, to recede now would be in the highest degree 
dishonorable. Burgoyne thereupon yielded a reluctant assent, and 
the articles of capitulation were signed at nine o'clock the same 
morning. 

The second clause of this agreement or capitulation was not carried 
out by Congress, and most of the captured army, with the exception 
of Burgoyne, Riedesel, Phillips and Hamilton were retained as pris- 
oners while the war lasted.' 



' Thu second clause, to which allusion is made in the text, read as follows: 

^' Serond. A free passage to be granted to the army under Lieutenant-Cieneral Burgoyne to 

Great Britain, on condition of not serving again in North America during the present contest; 

and the port of Boston is assigned for the entry of transports to receive the troops, whenever 

General Howe shall so order." 



268 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The excuses given by Congress for this lack of faith were most pal- 
try and utterly unworthy of a body representing a great cause. The 
remonstrances to General Gates and Congress remained unnoticed, 
and although Washington, himself, earnestly urged a fulfillment of 
the pledge in which the honor of Congress and the country was in- 
volved, the most unworthy counsels prevailed. When, for instance, 
it was proposed that the embarkation of the troops should take place 
at Newport, R. I., an intention (perfectly absurd) was imputed to 
General Howe of breaking faith by causing Burgoyne's army to join 
him in New York. Finally, in the beginning of January, 1778, Con- 
gress passed a resolution indefinitely suspending the embarkation. 
The true reason for this course was, undoubtedly, the unworthy one 
that many of the troops might be brought over to the American cause 
by desertions, which, however, was unsuccessful, as— although it has 
been thought otherwise — not more than eighty Germans deserted 
from their colors after the surrender. Washington felt this keenly 
and seems to have been greatly mortified at the decision of Congress. 
In a letter to Burgoyne dated at headquarters, Penn., March nth, 
1778, he writes: "I take pleasure in the opportunity you have 
afforded me of assuring you, that, far from suffering the views of na- 
tional opposition to be embittered and debased by personal animosi- 
ty, I am ever ready to do justice to the gentlemen and the soldiers, and 
to esteem where esteem is due, however the idea of* a public enemy 
may intei^ose." By this most unworthy action of Congress, the Ried- 
esels, Phillips and many other worthy officers as well as privates suf- 
fered great privation and misery for several years. 

The Americans obtained by this victory, at a very critical period, 
an excellent train of brass artillery, consisting of forty-two guns of 
various calibre, four thousand, six hundred and forty-seven muskets, 
four hundred sets of harness, and a large supply of ammunition. 
The prisoners numbered five thousand, eight hundred and four, and 
the entire American force at the time of the surrender, including 
regulars (i. e. Continentals) and militia, was twenty thousand, eight 
hundred and seventeen effective men. This, however, does not in- 
clude the American troops on the eastern bank of the Hudson as they 
were not counted. These consisted chiefly of militia from what is 
now Washington County, and from New Hampshire and Connecticut. 

At eleven o'clock on the morning of the 17th the Royal army left 
their fortified camp and marched to the green in front of old Fort 



BRITIvSH SURRENDER. 269 

Hardy, on the meadow just north of Fish Creek, at its junction with 
the Hudson.' Here in the presence only of Morgan Lewis and Wil- 
kinson, they left their cannon and small arms. With a longing eye 
the artilleryman looked for the last time upon his faithful gun, part- 
ing with it as from his bride, and that forever. With tears trickling 
down his bronzed cheeks, the bearded grenadier stacked his musket 
to resume it no more. Others, in their rage, knocked off the butts of 
their arms and the drummers stamped their drums to pieces. General 
Riedesel was, also, deeply affected by these sad events. At eight 
o'clock in the luorning he collected all the German troops, and in- 
formed them of their fate. In solemnity and in silence, and with 
drooping heads, the brave and tried warriors heard the words from 
the mouth of their beloved leader, whose voice, manly at all times, 
trembled on this occasion, and who was obliged to summon all of his 
self control to hide his emotions. '' It was no lack of courage on your 
part," he said, among other things, to his men, " by which this awful 
fate has come upon you. You will always be justified in the eyes of 
the world." He concluded his address, with the exhortation that as 
good soldiers they should bear their luisfortune with courage and do 
their duty at all times, displaying order and discipline, for, in so do- 
ing, they would retain the love of their sovereign and the respect of 
their enemies. 

Immediately after the surrender, the British, under a body-guard, 
took up their march for Boston, whence they expected to embark; 
and bivouacked the first night at their old encampment at the base of 
the hill where Eraser was buried. As they debouched from the 
ineadow, where they had deposited their arms, they passed between 
the Continentals, who were drawn up in parallel lines. But on no 
face did they see exultation. "As we passed the American arm}"," 
writes Lieutenant Aubury, one of the captured officers and bitterly 
prejudiced against his conquerors, " I did not observe the least disre- 
spect, or even a taunting look, but all was mute astonishment and 
pity; and it gave us no little comfort to notice this civil deportment to 
a captured enemy, unmarred by the exultant air of victors." General 
Gates, moreover, showed himself on this occasion, exceedingly noble 

' Fort Hardy was a military work built by the English, during the governorship of Sir 
Charles Hardy, and was intended to supersede the old fort which had been erected as the war of 
William and Mary (See one of my early chapters) during the latter part ot the 17th century. The 
outer works yet (1900) retain the appearance of a strong fortification and embrace about fifteen 
acres of ground. 



270 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

and generous towards the captives. That he might show in some 
manner the feeling of the Americans, he commanded his troops to 
wheel around the instant the English laid down their arms, while he, 
himself, drew down the curtains of his carriage in which he had 
driven to the ground and in which he was then seated. 

Early the next morning General Wilkinson, before the capitulation, 
visited Burgoyne in his camp and accompanied him to the ground 
where his army w^ere to lay down their arms. Having inspected the 
place, the two generals rode to the bank of the Hudson, where Bur- 
goyne, surveying it with attention, asked his companion whether it 
was not fordable at that place ? "Certainly, sir," said Wilkinson, 
" but do you not observe the people on the opposite shore ? " " Yes," 
replied Burgoyne, " I have seen them too long ! " 

The English general having expressed a wish to be formally intro- 
duced to his old comrade. Gates, Wilkinson arranged an interview a 
few moments after the capitiilation. In anticipation of this meeting-, 
Burgoyne had bestowed the greatest care upon his toilet. He had 
attired himself in full court dress, and wore costly regimentals and a 
richly decorated hat with streaming plumes. Gates, a smaller man 
and with much less of manner, was dressed, on the contrary, in a 
plain blue overcoat, which had upon it scarcely anything indicative of 
his rank. Upon the two generals first catching a glimpse of each 
other, they rode forward simultaneously and advanced until they were 
only a few steps apart, when they reined up and h^ted. The English 
general took off his hat, and making a polite bow, said, " The for- 
tune of war. General Gates, has made me your prisoner." The 
American general, in reply, simply returned his greeting and said: 
" I shall ever be ready to testify that it was not the fault of your ex- 
cellency." 

As soon as this introduction was over the other captive generals 
and their suites repaired to the cabin which constituted the headquar- 
ters of Gates, where they were received with the greatest courtesy, 
and with the consideration due to brave but unfortunate men. After 
Riedesel had been presented to Gates, Morgan and other American 
officers, he sent for his wife and children. It is to this circumstance 
that we owe the portraiture of a lovely trait in General vSchuyler's 
character. " In our passage through the American camp," the Bar- 
oness writes, " I observed with great satisfaction, that no one cast at 
us a scornful glance. On the contrary, they all greeted me, even 



BRITISH RECEIVE GENEROUS TREATMENT. 271 

showing- compassion on their countenances at seeing a mother with 
her little children in such a condition. I confess I feared to come in- 
to the enemy's camp, as the thing was so entirely new' to me. When 
I approached the tents a noble looking man came toward me and took 
the children out of the wagon, embraced and kissed them, and then, 
with tears in his eyes, helped me to alight. He then led me to the 
tent of General Gates, with whom I found Generals Burgoyne and 
Phillips who were upon an extremely friendly footing with him. 
Presently, the man who had received me so kindly, came up and said 
to me: " It may be embarrassing to you to dine with all these gentle- 
men ; come now with your children into my tent, where I will give 
you, it is true, a frugal meal, but one that will be accompanied by the 
best of wishes." 'You are certainly,' answered I, 'a husband and 
father, since you show me so much kindness. ' I then learned that he 
was the American General Schuyler." 

The English and German generals dined wdth the American com- 
mander in his cabin on boards laid across barrels. The dinner, which 
was served upon four dishes, consisted only of ordinary viands, the 
Americans at this period being accustomed to plain and frugal meals. 
The drink, on this occasion, was cider and rum mixed with water. 
Burgoyne appeared in excellent humor. To General Morgan he talked 
a great deal and spoke very flatteringly of the Americans, remarking, 
among other things, that he admired the number, dress and discipline 
of theiparmy and, above all, the decorum and regularity that were ob- 
served. " Your funds of men," he said to Gates, " are inexhaustible. 
Like the Hydra's head, wdien cut off, seven more spring up in its 
stead." 

He also proposed a toast to General Washington, an attention that 
Gates returned by drinking the health of the King of England. The 
conversation on both sides was unrestrained, affable and free. In- 
deed, the conduct of Gates, throughout, after the terms of the surren- 
der had been adjusted, was marked with eqi:al delicacy and magna- 
nimity, as Burgoyne himself admitted in a letter to the Earl of Derby. 
In that letter, the captain-general particularly mentioned one circum- 
stance which, he said, exceeded all he had seen or read of on a like 
occasion. It was, that when the British soldiers had marched out of 
their camp to the place where they were to pile their arms, not a man 
of the American troops was to be seen; General Gates having ordered his 
W'hole army out of sight, that not one of them should be a spectator 



272 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of the humiliation of the British troops. This was a refinement of 
delicacy and of military generosity and politeness reflecting the high- 
est credit iipon the conqueror, and was spoken of by the officers of 
Burgoyne in the strongest terms of approbation. 

As the company rose from the table, the Royal army filed past in 
their march to the seaboard, the American bands striking up "Yan- 
kee Doodle." Thereupon, by preconcerted arrangement, the gener- 
als stepped out, and Burgoyne, drawing his sword, presented it in the 
presence of the two armies to General Gates. The latter received it 
with a courteous bow and immediately returned it to the vanc[uished 
general. Colonel Trumbull has graphically depicted this scene in one 
of his paintings in the rotunda of the capitol at Washington. 

General Schuyler, as we have seen, was in the camp with Gates at 
the time of the surrender; and when Burgoyne, with his general offi- 
cers, arrived in Albany, they were the guests of Mrs. General Schuy- 
ler by whom they were treated with great hospitality. The urbanity 
of General and Mrs. Schuyler's manners, and the chivalric magna- 
nimity of his character, smarting as he was, under the extent and 
severity of his pecuniary losses, are attested by General Burgoyne, 
himself, in his speech in 1778, in the British House of Commons. He 
said further, that one of the first persons he saw, after the " Conven- 
tion " was signed, was General Schuyler; and when expressing to him 
his regret at the burning of his mansion, General vSchuyler desired 
him "to think no more of it, and that the occasion justified it accord- 
ing to the rules of war." " He did more," continued Burgoyne, " He 
sent an aide-de-camp ' to conduct me. to Albany, in order, as he ex- 
pressed it, to procure better c|uarters than a stranger might be able to 
find. That gentleman conducted me to a very elegant house and, to 
my great surprise, presented me to Mrs. Schuyler and her family. 
In that house I remained during my whole stay in Albany, with a 
table of more than twenty covers for me and my friends, and every 
other demonstration of hospitality." ' 

' The late Colonel Rich,ard Varick, then the military secretary of General Schuyler. 

"^ During Mr.s. Riedcsel's stay at Albany, as the guest of General and Mrs. Schuyler, one of 
her little girls, on first coming into the house, exclaimed, " Oh mamma ! Is this the palace papa 
was to have when he came to America ? " As the Schuyler fainily understood German, Madame 
Riedesel colored at the remark, which, however, was pleasantly got over. Life of Pete}- Van 
Schaick. 

When I was in Germany in i8=;7, I arrived there about a month, only, after the death of this very 
little girl who made the above remark and who had become a grandmother with a large num- 



CHARACTER OF BURCxOYNE. 273 

General BurgOA'ne, until his unfortunate campaig'n, stood very high 
in his profession. He had made a brilliant reeord on the banks of 
the Tagus for dash, as well as judgment, under the eye of a master in 
the art of war, the famous Count Schaumberg Lippe, who had been 
seleeted by Frederiek the Great to save the Kingdom of Portugal, on 
the very verge of ruin. He also added to a prepossessing exterior, 
the polished manners and keen sagaeity of a courtier. He was like- 
wise witty and brave. But personal courage alone does not constitute 
a commander; for of a ccjmmander other qualities are expected, espec- 
ially experience and presence of mind. Burgoyne, in all his under- 
takings, was hasty and' self-willed. Desiring to do everything him.- 
self, he rarely consulted with others, and yet he never knew how to 
keep a plan secret. While in a subordinate position, although con- 
tinually carping at his military superiors and complaining of his in- 
ferior position, yet when given a separate command, he was guilty of 
the same faults which he had reprehended in others. Being a great 
sybarite he often neglected the duties of a general, as well toward his 
king as his subordinates. He could easily make light of everything, 
provided he was eating a good meal, or was with his mistress, and 
while he was t^njoying his champagne and choice food his army suf- 
fered the keenest want. Thus, immediately after the capitulation, 
he could eat and drink with the enemy's generals, and talk with the 
greatest ease of the most important events. 

Soon after the surrender he returned to England and justly threw 
the failure of the expedition upon the ministry. Nor can there be 
any doubt that, had he been properly supported, he would, despite his 
mistakes, have reached Albany ; since, i a that case, (lates would not 
have been at Bemus ' Heights, with an army to oppose him. Mr. Fon- 
blanque, in his " Life of Burgovne," draws particular attention for 
the first time, to a fact that throws entirely new light on the apparent 
failure of Howe, and clears up all that has hitherto seemed mysterious 
and contradictory. Orders, fully as imperative as those to Burgoyne, 

ber of descendants. I had intended tc. cull on lier, and was g:reatly disappointed to find she had 
died so recently before my visiting (iermany. I mention this circumstance merely to show how 
near those old Revolutionary times are to our own— not so -tf/y far distant ! 

' The correct spelling, and not Bemis as is generally supposed. Jly authority for this is Hon. 
Hugh Hastinjjs. (State Historian for New York) who wrote me a few days since, that in his late 
researches, he had come across the signature of Jotham Bemus— the owner of, the Heights— in 
w-hich he writes his name Beiiiu.i. 

I -U ] 



274 WAvSHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

were to have been sent to Howe, but, owinj^- to the carelessness of 
Germaine — who preferred g'oing to a ^j;-ood dinner in Kent to waiting- a 
few moments to append his signature — they were pigeon-holed in 
London where they were found, after the Convention at Saratoga, 
carefully docketed and only wanting the signature of the minister. 
Hence, Howe acted on the discretionary orders sent to him previously 
and concluded to go to Philadelphia instead of to Albany — merely 
telling Clinton that, if other reinforcements came meanwhile from 
England, he might make a diversion in favor of Burgoyne. Primar- 
ilv, then, the failure of the expedition was due to the gross negligence 
•of the war-minister, though the failure of Howe does not excuse the 
blunders through which Burgoyne lost his army in the retreat. It 
should, however, be stated in justice to the British General that, in 
arranging the campaign with the King, he expressly stipulated and 
insisted on it most strenuously that his success depended upon Howe's 
■co-operation. 

Burgovne, however, was perhaps, not so much to blame for the dis- 
mal failure of his " Expedition." Thus, Colonel Montressor in his Jour- 
nal (published in Vol. XIA' of the Historical Society Collection, new 
■series) in commenting upon the reasons of the failure of British arms 
in America, among other criticisms writes: "The sending of Bur- 
_goyne on a route where he never had been, nor knew nothing of, 
commanding officer of the artillery, a parade man. neither knew 
American service, clogged with a needless heavy train of artillery. 
No engineer that had ever been there before, no plans, etc., of all 
absurd things, dividing that little army, one division with Lieutenant 
Leger and the other with Skene, two madmen." 

On his first arrival in England he was received very coldly by the 
court and people, the King refusing to see him; but upon a change in 
the Ministry he regained somewhat of his former popularity. In 1780, 
he appeared before the public in a vindication of himself in a work 
entitled the State of the Expedition. Subsequently, he wrote several 
popular comedies, and was one of the managers of the impeachment 
of Lord Hastings. He did not live, however, to see the resiilt of that 
trial, as he died on the 4th of August, 1797, and was buried in West- 
minster Abbey.' 

In regard to (General (iates, the same incapacity which aften.vard 

' Tht-rt.- wore rumurs al llie time that he died of poison, self-adlilinistered. from eliairrin at 
his failure in life, liul these rumors ajipear to me to be without any foundation. 



CHARACTER OF GATES. 275 

became so apparent in his unfortunate southern campaign, was mani- 
fested from the time of his assuming the command of the Northern 
army tmtil the surrender. It was, perhaps, no fault of his that he 
had been placed in command at the North, just at the auspicious mo- 
ment when the discomfiture of Burgoyne was no longer problemati- 
cal.' He w-as ordered by Congress to the station and performed his 
diity passably well. But it is no less true, that the laurels won by 
him ought to have been w^orn by vSchuyler. Colonel Wilkinson, who 
was a member of Gates's military family, has placed this question in 
its true aspect. He maintains, in his Memoirs, that not onh' had the 
army of Burgoyne been essentially disabled by the defeat of the Ger- 
mans at Bennington before the arrival of Gates, but that the repulse 
of vSt. Leger at Fort Stanwix had deranged his plans, while safety 
had been restored to the western frontier and the panic, thereby 
caused, had subsided. He likewise maintains that after the reverses 
at the North, nowise attributed to him, and before the arrival of 
Gates, the zeal, patriotism and sanitary arrangements of General 
Schuyler had vanquished the prejudices excited against him; that by 
the defeat of Baum and St. Leger, Schuyler had been enabled to con- 
centrate and oppose his whole Continental force against the main 
body of the enemy, and that by him, also, before the arrival of Gen- 
eral Gates, the friends of the Revolution had been re-animated and 
excited to manly resistance, while the adherents of the Royal cause 
were intimidated, and had shrunk into silence and inactivity. From 
these premises, which are indisputable, it is no more than a fair de- 
duction to say "that the same force which enabled Gates to subdue 
the British army, wcnild have produced a similar eifect under the 
orders of General Schuyler; since the operations of the campaign did 
not involve a single instance of professional skill, and the triumph of 
the American arms was accomplished by the physical force and valor 
of the troops Under ihk Pro i i;ci iox and Dirixiion of ihk God of 
Ba r ii.F.s. " ■ 



' And yet, I am not entirely sure of this statement, for Oates undonlnedly intrigued in Con- 
.iCress to have himself supersede Schuyler, 'rherefore, in the text, it will be observed, I say 
■' perhaps." 

- " .V Thanksgivinj^ sermon," says Lamb, " was prea<-hed on the occasion of the surrender 
before the American army by the chaplain | Timothy Dvvixht, afterwards President of Vale Col- 
lege] from foel II, 20th. " But I will remove far from you the Northern .-Vrmy and will drive him 
into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the East sea and his hinder part toward the 
utmost sea. and his ill savor shall come up because he hath done great things." 



276 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Gates was a man of i^Tcat plausibility and address and, withal, a 
handsome fellow and a "Teat lion in soeiety. It. is, therefore, not sur- 
prising, that, flushed with his fortuitous sueciss, or rather wnth the 
sueeess attending' his fortuitous position, he did not wear his honors 
Avith any remarkable meekness. On the contrary, his bearinj^;' toward 
the commander-in-chief was far from respectful. He did not even 
write to Washington on the occasion until after a considerable time 
had elapsed. In the first instance, Wilkinson was sent, as the bearer 
of dispatches to Congress, but did not reach that body until fifteen 
days after the articles of capitulation had been signed, and three days 
more w^ere occupied in arranging the papers before they were pre- 
sented.' The first mention which Washington makes of the defeat of 
Burgoyne is contained in a letter written to his brother on the i8th 
•of October, the new'S having been communicated to him b}- Governor 
Clinton. He spoke of the event again on the 19th in a letter addressed 
to General Putnam. On the 25th in a letter written to that officer he 
acknowledges the reception of a copy of the articles of capitulation 
from him — adding, that it was the first authentic intelligence he had 
received "of the affair," and that he had begun to grow uneasy and 
almost to suspect that the previous accounts were premature. Nor 
w^as it until the 2nd of November that Gates deigned to communicate 
to the Commander-in-chief a word upon the subject, and then only 
incidentally, as though it were a matter of secondary importance.-' 

(lates's treatment of Morgan, also, was on the same line. Notwith- 
standing the splendid service he had rendered at the Battle of October 
7th, his name had only a passing notice in the early dispatches, and 
was not even mentioned in Gates's official account of the surrender to 
which he (Morgan) had so largely contributed. 

This sudden fall from the General's favor was remarked by the offi- 
cers, as Gates had given Morgan unmistakable proofs of his confi- 
dence and esteem from the moment of his arrival in camp. Morgan 
kept silent, and the matter remained a mystery at the time, but it 
Avas afterward satisfactorilv explained. 

" Immediatelv after tlie surrender, ^lorgan A'isited (iates on busi- 



'" It was on tin's occasion that ime of the members of Congress made a motion, that they 
should comjjliment Colonel Wilkinson with tlie jjift of a pair of spurs." — Sparks. 

-'" The mills of the K<'ds Si'i'ind slowly, but e.xceedinjjly sure." So is it in re^iird to dates. 
He has been relegated to a proper obscurity, whereas, Washinjjton remains, as ever, in a bril- 
liant li.i,'^ht, both to the present and probably, to all future ijenerations. 



INCAPACITY OF CxATES. 277 

ness, when he was taken aside by that'General and confidentially in- 
formed tliat the 'nain army was extremely disatisfied with the con- 
duct oi the war bv the commander-in-chief, and that several of the 
best officers threatened to resign unless a change took place. Morgan 
perfectly comprehended the motives of Gates, although he did not 
then know of the correspondence he had been holding Avitli Conway, 
and he stcrnlv replied: '" I have one favor to ask of you, sir, which is 
never to mention that detestable subject to me again; for under no 
other man than Washington, as Commander-in-chief, would I ever 
serve." A dav or two after the foregoing interchange of views. Gen- 
eral Gates gave a dinner [in Albany] to the principal officers of the 
British army, to whicl a number of American officers were also in- 
vited. Morgan was not among the number. Before the evening Avas 
over, this petty indignity recoiled upon its author. Morgan had occa- 
sion to see Gates upon official business. He was accordingly ushered 
into the dining-room, where the guests still sat at the table. Having 
attended to the matter in hand, he was about to withdraw, without 
even the empty ceremony of an introduction. Struck, however, by 
the commanding figure and noble mein of the Colonel, the guests en- 
quired his name and, learning that it was Colonel Morgan, the British 
officers left the table, and, following him, took him by the hand, made 
themselves known to him, frankly declaring, at the same time, that 
they had felt him 'severely in the field,"' whereas they had only a 
dining-room acquaintance with (yates! 

Indeed, General Carrington, one of the ablest and most careful of 
the writers on the iVmerican Revolution, says: " Gates had no power 
in action, and there is not a redeeming fact during his connection 
with the Southern army to show his fitness to command troops." It 
has been seen that he participated actively in one part of the opera- 
tions near Saratoga until the morning of August 1 1 th, 1777. Confid- 
ing in numbers, and neglecting reconnoissances, he then imperiled 
his army by forcing several brigades across Fishkill creek, while re- 
inaining in the rear himself. Just as he plunged, saN'S de Peyster, 
like a reckless incapable into the ohainp-clos, or lists of Camden. 

(lates, as de Peyster further adds, did nothing but talk, and he was 
great at that, (kites was actually arguing with a dying English offi- 
cer and aggravating him, a mortal]}' wounded prisoner, while Arnold 

' Caluiiu's Life of M,<>x<i>i, also 1)>-. lltirs MSS. 



278 WASHINGTON COUNrY: ITS HISlimY. 

and Mor^-an were winning- for him the final bf ■-' Saratog-a, an 

exploit which must have chagrined Gates to the uctcrmost,. since noth- 
ing was further from his mind than to aflford Arnc/ld an opportunity 
to win any glory whatever. The American people/ accepted Gates as 
a hero through ignorance, just as an untutored n^gro accepts a bone 
with a feather stuck in it for a god. 

Transferred three years afterward (by a cabal/in Congress) to the 
chief command of the Southern Department, his/disastrous defeat and 
irresolute, not to say cowardly, conduct soon pritked the bubble of his 
ephemeral reputation and, after living in com^^arative obscurity for 
several years cm his farm in \'irginia, he died in the city of New 
York, April loth, 1806. j 

Congress, in the first flush of its gratitudb, decreed that (iates 
should be presented with a medal of gold to /l:)e struck expressly in 
commemoration of so glorious a victor}'. ()n|one side of it was the 
bust of the general with these words ai'ound it : Horatio Gates, duci 
strenuo, and in the middle Comitia Americaiia. On the reverse Burgoyne 
was represented in the attitude of deliveriiig his sword, and in the 
background, on the one side and on the other, were seen the two 
armies of England and America. At the top were these words: Salus 
rcgionem Septentrional, and at the foot, Hosier ad Saratogam in dcditione 
aarpta. Die XJ7/ Oct. M. D. CCLXXVII. 

The P>attle of Saratoga has justly been designated by Sir Edward 
Creasy, as "one of the fifteen decisive battles of history." It secured 
for the American Colonies the French alliance, and lifted the cloud of 
moral and financial gloom that had settled upon the hearts of the peo- 
ple, dampening the hopes of the leaders- of the Revolution, and 
wringing despairing words even from the hopeful Washington. Frdm 
that auspicious day, belief in the ultimate triumph of American liberty 
never abandoned the nation till it was realized and sealed four years 
later, almost to a day, in the final surrender of Yorktown.' 

And as a considerable portion of this campaign was on the soil of 
Washington County, her residents are justified in having great pride 
in the final result. 

' A beautiful monument at Sjluiylerville, N. Y., commemofates the surrender of liurKoyne. 
It is a.s near as can conveniently he placed, to where the headquarters of (iates were situated, 
which witnessed the formal surrender of Burgoyne's sword and the unfurling, for the first time, 
of the stars and stripes. 

It is true that a tla.u:, intended for the stars and stripes, and made out of a white shirt and 





^nj iy£:.0- !>t^//^r^ S3ro MY^ 




\L 



DISPERSAL OF MILITIA. 279 



CHAPTER XIX. 



-1791. 



Tin: Mii.i 1 1.\ Disi'KusK 'I'o Tiikir Homks — Sad Pi.iuiii' uy juk Wuk^s — Thkir F.\kms 
Dksoi.a I in — A Fori or Bi ock Hoise Buii.t .vt Nkw Pkkth (Sai.km) — A Coukt- 
Marii \i, Hki.h Id PiMsii Tjiosk Likewarm to the Cause ok the Colonies — 
The \'i-,rmo.\t Conir()\ krsv — Ekkokis of Governor George Clinton to Obtain 
EoR New York Ji risuktion o\er Vermont — The New Hampshire Grants — 
Clinton's Failirk — Enh oi' Controversy — Vermon'j- G]\es Up Her Claim to 
CnAKioriK Col NiA' — Is Admlitki) into the Union — Name of Charlotte Changed 
i;v Act of New York Lkulslatfre io that of \VAsinN(rroN Cofntv — Commls- 
sioNi'.Rs SiniLi-; FiNAi.iA' the BolNl)\R^• oi- rni'. Coi ni^'. 



As soon as the army of Buro-oync had departed for their quarters 
near Boston, the roads of Charlotte (Washinoton) eoiinty were filled 
with hands of. New England militia returning- in triumph to their 
homes — all of them convinced that for the present, at least, the tide 
of war was turned from that section ; many of them lielieving that the 
war was virtually at an end. Most of the Whigs of Charlotte county, 
nioreover, who had left their farms on account of the enemy's ad- 
vance, noAv returned and resumed their wonted vocations. There was 
also, a great increase of people who suddenly found that they had all 
along been on the side of the Colonies and who had onh^ restrained 
their real (?) sentiments by reason of policy. They had, of cotirse, 
been patriots in their inmost hearts all along! Those unlucky per- 
sons, however, who had been true to their principles throughout it 
all, and had openly espoused the cause of the King, were glad in their 
turn, to make their escape from the wrath of their old neighbors; and 
verv few of them ever returned to their former estates, except as 
members of desultory and marauding bands intent on the work of 
destruction and slaughter. Nor were the Whigs disposed to wage 



sonio hits iif red cldtli from tlic petticoat of a suldier's wife, lirst floated oil eaptured .<ilandards 
on the ramparts of Fort Stanwix (August 6th, 1777), but the " Stars and Strides," as we now .see 
them— except as to the number of the stars— were first unfurled to grace tlie surrender at Sara- 
toga. See (icneral |. Watts de Peyster's /w.f//Vc /<? 5<://?o'''<'''- '''be Fort .Stanwix Hag is now (lyoj) 
in the pos.session of Mrs. Abram Lansing of Albany, N. V., a <leseendant of (ieneral Oansevoort, 
by wliom it is justly cherished as a most precious relic. 



280 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

war with gloves. Officers styled " Commissioners of forfeiture" were 
appointed by the State, and the property of every Tory "who had 
coniniitted any overt act, in favor of the King, or had openly advo- 
cated his cause, was promptly seized and confiscated." Their personal 
property, in these cases, was sold for what it would bring; but, as 
there was ver}- little demand for their real estate, most of it was not 
sold until after the war. Some of the farms, however, were leased to 
those Whigs who were willing to run the risk of being marked out for 
special vengeance in case of another invasion. vStill, notwithstanding- 
the total collapse of the Expedition of General Burgoyne, the Whigs 
of Charlotte county were, nevertheless, in a sad plig'ht. All those in 
the northern part of the county had been driven (as we have seen in 
the preceding chapters) from their home just before harvest and many 
of those in the southern part had abandoned their farms through a 
well founded fear of the enemy.' "Glory," as Johnson remarks, 
" was a jfood thing", but as winter approached, many of the patriotic 
inhabitants of Charlotte county [i. e. Washington] were at a loss 
where to get food to last them through the season." 

Indeed, so great was the devastation committed by the invaders 
that, in the fore-part of 1778, numerous petitions for aid were sent to 
the New York Legislature by the people of Charlotte country and also 
from Cambridge and Easton. In response to these petitions the Leg-- 
islature directed the " Commissioners of Forfeiture " to sell two thou- 
sand bushels of wheat, rye and Indian corn (taken from the Tories) to 
those in need, to be paid for afterwards on moderate terms. 

Early in the spring of 1778, another little fort was built at New 
Perth, (now Salem). It was a log" block-house about twenty feet 
square, well supplied with loop-holes, and was surrounded by a stock- 
ade of erect log's, after the usual fashion of that day. It was named 
" Fort Williams" in honor of the energetic young Colonel who mani- 
fested, such unceasing activity in the American cause." This fort was 
g-arrisoned most of the time by the Charlotte county regiment, al- 
though in March of this year, it appears from the Williams papers, 
that there was a regiment of Connecticut militia stationed here. A 
draft was ordered from the militia in the spring" to fill up the depleted 

- These farmers were too poor to take the course of Mrs. General Schuyler, who, on the ap- 
proach of Burg'oyne, deliberately fired her wheat-fiekls, lest thev should afford comfort to the 
enemy. 

- I'-or a sketch of Colonel Williams, see appendix Xo. I\'. 



DELINg.UENTvS COURT-MARTIALLED. 281 

ranks of the Continental army ; bnt Governor Clinton wrote to Colonel 
Williams, under date of the 13th of April, that the Charlotte eounty 
reg'iment was exempt from the draft, on the eondition that it should 
furnish men for the defense of the frontier, designating- the number 
of men for this purpose as seventy. But even this number, small as 
it was, it was almost impossible to raise. Accordingly, on the 2 2d of 
April, Williams wrote to Governor Clinton to the effect that he had 
called his battalion together and could obtain only seventeen volun- 
teers. He expected, however, he further said, to get as many more, 
but he could not possibly raise seventy. Enough to make three com- 
panies had alread}^ moved down the river from Fort Edward, and 
others were preparing to go. Of those who remained, he likewise 
stated, about half were disaffected to the American cause, and most 
of these he feared would join the eneiny. Indeed, the county, at this 
time, was continually in a state of alarm. At the date of this letter, 
Williams's little battalion had just been called out to repel a threat- 
ened invasion — it having been reported that a small party of Ameri- 
cans who were scouting within twelve miles of Ticonderoga had 
been driv^en back by a large force of the enemy who were supposed to 
be advancing on a raid against the American settlements. It would 
appear, however, that this was a false alarm, as no invasion was made 
at this time. 

On the 23d of Alarch, a regimental court-martial was held at Fort 
Williams, by order of Colonel Williams, to punish those who, the pre- 
vious year, had been backward in responding to duty. This created 
at the time considerable excitement. The President of the court- 
martial was Captain (afterward Major and General) John Armstrong, 
who, it will be recalled, was subsequently Secretary of War during- 
Washington's first administration. Over sixty men were arraigned; 
some for neglecting to turn out when called upon, soine for accepting- 
"protection" from the British, and others for failing to take their 
cattle and retire to a safer place when so ordered by General Schuy- 
ler. Fifty-eight were convicted, but their punishments were not very 
severe, consisting entirely of fines ranging from one dollar up to 
thirty pounds. Those who merely failed to appear on muster, when 
summoned, were g^enerally fined in the first amount. Alexander 
Webster of Black Creek (Hebron) was Lieutenant-Colonel of the regi- 
ment at this time, and was also State Senator. 

I :i-) 1 



282 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

On September 8th, lyycS, the first election held in Charlotte county 
under the laws of the State of New York took place ; and even this 
was by special enactment, the rei>"ular election-day having- passed. 
Ninety-six votes were cast in Salem, twenty-nine in Kingsbiiry, twen- 
ty-four in Skeensboroug'h, twenty-one in Granville and twenty-eight 
in Black Brook (Hebron), a total of only one hundred and ninety- 
eight voters in the county, although there were doubtless more. Many 
of the inhabitants, however, were probably not very anxious to exer- 
cise the elective franchise, when such exercise might be considered 
hereafter evidence of rebellion against the King- on one side or treason 
to their country on the other. Therefore, a large proportion pre- 
ferred to remain non-committal. Argyle, though a separate district, 
seems to have held no election that year. One senator was chosen 
from Salem and one assemblyman was re-elected, but three out of 
four of the latter class of officials were chosen from other parts of the 
county. It will be understood that ai that period the work of election 
was much simpler than now, only town officers and members of 
the Legislature, besides the Governor and Lieutenant-governor, being 
thus chosen — the vast number of executive and judicial officers, now 
selected, being then appointed by the "Council of appointment." 
One of the legislative acts of this year, moreover, passed on February 
17th, is of considerable importance. It directed the holding of county 
courts and courts of sessions at New Perth (vSalem) which has ever 
been the county seat, or one of the county seats, of the county. An 
act of the previous. year had directed that the sheriff's mileage should 
be computed from the meeting"-house at the same place. If there were 
any courts held under the act just mentioned the records have Ijcen 
lost or destroyed. 

The 3^ear 1779 passed away with comparatively little excitement on 
the northern frontier of Washington County. Elsewhere the tide of 
conflict rolled to and fro, the American's cause suffering great de- 
pression, notwithstanding the aid furnished by France — an aid which 
was slight compared with the expectations which had been raised 
regarding it. From the western part of New^ York, too, came news 
of terrible massacres and of the retribution inflicted by Sullivan, but 
on the banks of the Battcnkill, of White Creek and of Black Creek 
the scattered inhabitants of Charlotte count\' ])lanted, sowed and har- 
vested in temporary safety. 

Wc say '• tem]:)orary safety," for soon after the farmers had planted 



THREATENED INVASIONS FROM CANADA. 283 

their seeds in expectation of tine crops, on April 29th, 1780, an Amer- 
ican, who had been a prisoner at Montreal and had escaped, reached 
vSkeensboroug-h with the information that extensive preparations were 
makino" in Canada for an invasion of the Colonies by way of Lake 
Champlain. Some other facts received by General Schuj'ler seemed 
to corroborate his statement and a shock of alarm was quickly rolled 
throuo'h all of Northern New York. The Charlotte county militia 
were now commanded by Colonel Alexander Webster with Brinton 
Paine as Lieutenant-Colonel and Joseph McCracken as Major. They 
were ordered to be ready for instant action and (lovernor Clinton 
ordered four regiments, under Colonels Yates, Van Schoonhoven, 
\'an Wart and McCrea, (a brother of the massacred Jane McCrea) to 
assemble at Saratoga. Clinton, himself, with all the men he could 
rally in Albany and Chaiiotte counties, hastened to Fort Edward, 
which he reached in eight days after leaving Kingston. Thence, he 
proceeded to Fort (xeorge, Ticonderoga ' and Crown Point; when, 
having satisfied himself that no invasion was contemplated by the 
British at that time, he returned home. Meanwhile, the summer 
passed away with only the usual number of small alarms. Several 
corps of state troops, intermediate between militia and regulars, were 
raised this summer to defend the frontiers. A company of these 
troops, numbering between fift}^ and seventy-five men, under Captain 
Adiel Sherwood,- of Kingsbury was stationed, meanwhile, at Fort 
Anne. 

These rumors, however, of un attack from Canada were not un- 
founded. In the early part of October, 1780, Major Christopher 
Carleton, of the 29th British regiment, and a nephew of Sir Guv 
Carleton, with a force numbering twelve hundred men, composed of 
regulars, royalists and a few Indians, and with eight vessels and 
twenty-six boats, sailed up Lake Champlain with the avowed object 
of attacking Ballston, now the county seat of Saratoga county. Ar- 
riving at Bulwagga Bay, which forms the western shore of Crown 
Point, they landed the two hundred men which formed the Ballston 
party. This detachment was made up in part of Sir John Jcjhhson's 
corps of rangers (among whom were some refugees from the Ballston 

' The abandonment of Ticonderoga by the British caused a feeh'njef of more security to pre- 
\i(il in Charlotte County, though the thought of the Indian tomahawk still caused many a mother 
and many a child to shudder at every sound. 

^ The dean of the St. Louis Law School. .\1. .\. L. Sherwood, is a descendant of this officer. 



284 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

settlement) and partly of a few Mohawk Indians, under the eommand 
of their war chief, " Captain John." This motley company was under 
the command of Captain Monroe, who had, before the war, been an 
Indian trader at Schenectady, and had had much to do with the early 
settlement of Saratoga county. The object of this part of the expe- 
dition was to attack Schenectady; but, if that was not found to be 
feasible, (on account of its being considered too hazardous) then the 
orders were to make a descent upon the Ballston settlement. The 
orders to Monroe were to plunder, destroy property and take prison- 
ers, but not to kill unless attacked or resisted, or to prevent escapes.^ 
After leaving this detachment of two hundred men under Captain 
Monroe to proceed to the lower settlements by way of " Crane Moun- 
tain " and Schroon river in Warren County, the main body, under 
Major Carleton, and consisting of some eight hundred men, proceeded 
up Lake Champlain, and landing at Skeensborough at the head of 
South Bay, marched rapidly to Fort Anne where they arrived on the 
loth of October and demanded its surrender. The fort was a rude 
log block house wuth a stockade of pointed pickets around it," and gar- 
risoned by a company of state troops and a few Continentals. Though 
ill supplied with men, and almost out of ammunition, Captain Sher- 
wood, the officer in command, at first refused to surrender on the de- 
mand of Carleton; but on seeing that he was greatly oiitnumbered by 
the eneni}' and that resistance accordingly would be hopeless, he 
ynelded himself and his men prisoners — first stipulating, however, 
that the women and children who were in the fort should have a safe 
escort to their homes. Upon its evacuation by the Americans Carle- 
ton burned the fort or block house and swept down the Hudson as far 
as Stillwater plundering and burning as he went, the villages of 
Sandy Hill and Fort Edward. Kingsbury was thus again utterly 
desolated. " It was during this raid," says Dr. Holden in his history 
of Oueensbury, "that Mrs. Abraham Wing lay all night on the edge 



' It does not come within the province of this history to giv& an account of thi.s raid upon 
Ballston. The curious reader, however, if he wishes to pursue this investigation further and 
learn of all the facts in detail— and they are most interesting— is referred to the following works^ 
N. B. Sylvester's History of Saratoga County, Judge Oeorge (1. Scott's Centennial Historical Ad- 
liress, July 4th, 1876, and tiiy oiint lieiiiijiiscences of Unratogn and Ballston. Perhaps, in the last men- 
tioned work, there will be found a more fuller description of this raid than in the other two. 

- For an excellent representation of this block house, drawn on the spot by I^ieutenant 
Aubury of Burgoyne's army, see the latter's Traiiels. Auhurv. although an officer, was what 
would be called at present a newspaper correspondent. 



CARLETON'vS INVASION. 285 

of the bii^- cedar swamp with her young-est child — the hite Daniel W. 
Wing" — and the following night by the spring at the foot of Sandy 
Hill." This last ruthless act of the Revolution in this county was long 
handed down by tradition as "the year of the burning." By it, the 
settlers were mostly driven away, and the town was abandoned. 

" On the 9th of October, Captain Sherwood was dining with Colonel 
Henry Livingston, the commander at Fort Edward, being on his way 
to White Creek, and not imagining any foe to be near. While he was 
at Vuvi Edward, however, an order arrived from (lovernor Clinton 
requiring Livingston and Sherwood to endeavor to re-inlist their men 
for two months more. Sherwood returned to Fort Anne for that pur- 
pose ; but that night he sent word to Living"Ston that the enemy were 
close b}'. The next morning' he was captured as before stated. The 
same morning two of Livingston's ofheers came hurrying in from 
Kingsbury with the news that the enemy was burning and laying 
waste that district. Livingston sent to Colonel McCrea at vSaratoga 
and Colonel Webster at Black Creek for their regiments of militia. 

" Immediately afterwards some of the frightened inhabitants of 
Kingsbury came rushing' down the hill north of Fort Edward, with 
such household goods as they could bring with them, seeking the pro- 
tection of the post. They reported the enemy only four miles away, 
and the smoke of burning houses could plainly be seen from the fort. 
Livingston had but sixty-five men, of whom he sent twenty to menace 
the foe ; but though they remained out through the day, they found 
the marauders too strong to attack. After dark four scouts were sent 
out, who found some of the enemy three miles distant. Colonel Liv- 
ingston then ordered a lieutenant and twenty men to assail the camp 
in question; but as he was about to march, a terrible outcry was 
heard on the west side of the Hudson, where the Indians were yell- 
ing, burning and killing cattle, and the detachment was therefore 
ordered back. Two of the enemy came so close that they were fired 
on from the fort, but without effect. The next day another scout was 
sent out, who discovered that the main body of the enemy had taken 
the route to Fort George ' with a view, undoubtedly, of attacking that 
post. This news was correct; and after a sharp skirmish outside of 
that fcjrt between Gag'c's Hill" and " l^loody pond," in which the 

' Jolinxon. 

''"Fort Oage" was a small redoubt on tlu- hill south of I'ort William Henry. Its remains 
can still ( igoo) plfiinly be seen. 



I 



28G WASHINGTON COUNa^Y: ITS HISTORY. 

British were successful, and after a brief investment of the fort, tlic 
garrison surrendered themselves as prisoners of war, and the fort Wcis 
entirely destroyed. 

Meanwhile, on the eleventh and twelfth Living'ston was reinfc^rced 
by three hundred militia, but that officer, even with this additional 
force, did not think himself sufficiently strong- to warrant an attack, 
and the following day Carleton made good his retreat down Lake 
Champlain. A few days afterward, more militia came to the relief of 
Fort Edward; but General Van Rensselaer declared them "to have 
been more interested on plundering the public stores left at Fort 
(leorge than on any other service." They were, therefore, very 
quickly sent to their homes, while all but thirty of Livingston's men 
also left at the same time declaring that their time had expired.' " On 
the 1 6th and 17th Colonel Livingston learned from his scouting par- 
ties that small parties of the enemy had been seen hovering around 
Skeensborough, and on the latter day (17th) General Schuyler sent a 
messenger to Livingston advising the evacuation of Fort Edward. 
Accordingly, Livingston straightwa}" fell back with his men to Sara- 
toga, but, on the 24th, having received some additional reinforce- 
ments, he returned to Fort Edward."- 

The year following these invasions (1781) brought with it no relax- 
ation of Governor Clinton's vigilance. The air continued to be filled 
with Indian alarms, and rumors of projected movements of the Brit- 
ish were rife; on the northern frontier, especially, another storm 
seemed about to break. " The enemy's morning and evening guns 
at Ticonderoga," wrote Schuyler to General James Clinton, under 
date of May 21st, 1781, "have been distinctly heard near Fort Anne 
for three or four days past." At the same time came equally alarm- 
ing intelligence that an expedition, under Sir John Johnson, was 
meditated against Pittsburg, while to render affairs still more com- 
plicated, the troubles between New York State and the Green Moun- 
tain Boys, on account of the New Hampshire Grants — which has been 
discussed in full — and which, during the common peril had smoul- 
dered, burst out afresh. 

Nevertheless, with this raid of Carleton (just narrated) it may be 

' There is. however, much to be .said on the side of these volunteer militia. For a full discus- 
sion of this subject see a few chapters back. 

'■* The above account of Carleton's raid, says Johnson, is largely taken from an autoj<raph 
statement of Colonel Livingston preserved among the family papers in Columbia County. N. V. 



NEW HAMPSHIRE GRANTS. 287 

said that the alarms and dreadful suffering's of the .people of Wash- 
ing-ton County eame to an end, and after the treaty of Peace between 
(ireat Britain and the United States three 3'ears afterward — thus en- 
suring; full security — -those farmers who had been driven from their 
liearths and firesides gradually returned and re-occupied their vacant 
lands. Henceforth, left in peace and quietness to till their farms, 
the county finally became one of the richest agricultural counties of 
New York State. 

A history of Washington (Charlotte) County would l)e inccjmplete 
witlKHit a brief sketch of the circumstances under which it was set off 
as a separate county. The present county of Washington, as I have 
stated in my introductory chapter, was orig'inally known as Char- 
lotte, which, together with that part of Albany County now included 
in Washington, was chiefly settled by New Englanders and by 
Scotch and others of f.oreign birth. The former, as a matter of coui'^e 
had almost all adhered to the American cause, while many of the lat- 
ter (though by no means all) were friendh' to the King; and, as the 
Americans were most of the time in possession of the territory in 
cpiestion, the New Englanders were largely in the majorit}^ among" 
the dominant class. When afterwards Charlotte was claimed by the 
New Hampshire governor as a part of the ■•' New Hampshire grants" 
(patents for which had been given previously by (jovernor Went- 
worth) that county became at once in dispute. In order, however, 
that the reader may have a clear understanding of the events which 
finally led up to the county becoming a part of New York vState, an 
accoimt of the long and acrimonious discussion between the New 
York and A^ermont authorities which preceded it, is in place, and not 
at all irrelevant. 

Although the A'ermonters had formed themselves into an indepen- 
dent state government, the Legislature of New York still attempted 
to assert its right of jurisdiction, althongh it made most liberal prof- 
fers of compromise in regard to titles of lands — offering, indeed, even 
to recognize those which liad pix'viously been in dispute. A procla- 
mation to this effect, conceived in the most liberal spirit, had been 
issued by (lovernor Clinton in Feljruar}-, 1778, avowing, however, in 
regard to the contumacious, "the rightful supremacy of New York 
over their persons and 'pt^operty, as disaffected subjects." But like 
every preceding effort,' eitliei- of force,. or conciliation the present was 



288 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of no avail. Ethan Allen issued a counter proclamation to the people 
of the Grants, and the work of their own independent organization 
proceeded without serious interruption. They were the more en- 
courag-ed to persevere in this course, from an impression that although 
Congress could not then sanction proceedings in regard to New York 
that were clearly illegal, the New England members and some of the 
Southern also, would nevertheless not be very deep mourners at their 
success. 

It must be confessed that the action of Congress was such as to give 
rise to unpleasant suspicions. " So long ago as the month of August 
last," wrote Clinton to President Jay on the yth of June, 1779, "I 
remonstrated to Congress, through General Washington, on the con- 
duct of Brigadier-General Starke, then commanding at Albany, for 
receiving from the revolted subjects of this state several of whom 
were among the most prominent citizens of Charlotte (Washington 
County) who had been apprehended and destined to banishment by 
Colonel Allen and his associates, and for detaining them under mili- 
tary confinement. To this atrocious insult on the civil authority of 
this state, Congress, though acquainted with it, has not to this day 
thought proper to pay the least attention. Nor can I forbear observ- 
ing that the present inattention of Congress on this point strikes me 
with additional surprise, when I consider this is not the first instance 
in which their officers of high rank have aimed a bold stab at the 
honor and authority of this state." And, notwithstanding the contin- 
ual remonstrances of Clinton Congress was in no haste, apparently, to 
right New York. Finally Congress passed a resolution appointing a 
committee to visit the Grants, and confer with the Vermonters — in 
short, what, at she present day would be called an "Investigating 
Committee." This, however, was extremely distasteful to the New 
York Legislature, and Clinton, more sensible than some of our states- 
men (!) of the present day, protested strongly against it, on the 
ground that "'action and not talk,'" was what was needed. " However 
pure," he added, "the intention of Congress may have been in this 
resolution for appointing a committee to confer with the revolted 
citizens of this state [and be it reinembered that a large portion of the 
people of Charlotte County, was included in this] I am apprehensive 
it will by no means produce the salutary effects for which I suppose 
it was calculated." Still, although Clinton so wrote, it is evident that 
fears of a combination against his own state gave the writer consider- 



ANXIETY CONCERNING THE GRANTS. 289 

able uneasiness. " I presume," the g-overnor wrote again to the dele- 
gates in Congress, " it is unnecessary to inform you that the Vermont 
business is now arrived at a crisis, or to urge any arguments to induce 
your utmost exertions in obtaining the sense of Congress without 
delay. The Legislature will meet on Tuesday next and in the mean- 
lime I shall order the one thousand men, destined for the defence of 
Fort Anne, Skeensborough and the frontiers in general, and also, to 
complete the Continental battalions, to march to Brattleborough for 
the protection of that and the adjacent towns, unless the interposition 
of Congress shall render this measure unnecessary." And, on the 
29th of October of the same year (1779) in a letter to James Duane 
from Poughkeepsie, he intimated that "in the event of a certain con- 
tingency, the New York delegates would be withdrawn from Con- 
gress, and the resources of the state, which have been so lavishly 
afforded to the continent, be withheld for the defence of New York." 
He also, in an earnest letter, called the attention of Washington to 
the subject, saying very plainly that in view of the danger which 
threatened New^ York, he " must request that your Excellency will be 
pleased to give the necessary directions for returning wnthin the state 
the six brass 6 pounders, together with their apparatus, which the 
state lent for the use of the army in 1776, as soon as possible." He 
also, in the same letter severely commented upon the conduct of 
Ethan Allen in seizing and imprisoning the civil and military officers 
of New York State in the county of Cumberland and the Commander- 
in-chief issued orders to General Schuyler to arrest him in the event 
of certain contingencies. "The latter," says Mr. Lossing in his Life 
of Schuyler, " shared in Clinton's apprehensions, and, on the 31st of 
October he wrote to the governor as follows : 

" The conduct of some people to the eastward is alarmingly mys- 
terious. A flag, under the pretext of settling a cartel with Vermont, 
has been on the Grants. Allen has disbanded his militia and the 
enemy in number of sixteen hundred are rapidly advancing toward 
us. * * * Entreat General Washington for more Continental 
troops, and let me beg of vour Excellency to hasten up here." 

Meanwhile, the causes of irritation became more and more frequent 
and exasperating, until in the year 1781 the parties were again on the 
verge of open hostilities. The people of the Grants, as they had 
grown in strength had increased in arrogance, until they had extended 

I :^6 I 



290 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

their claims to the Hudson river and it was no diminution of the per- 
plexities of New York that strong indications appeared in several of 
the northern towns to which the people of the Grants had previously 
interposed not even a shadow of a claim, of a disposition to go over to 
A'ermont. Among these wavering people were some of those of 
Charlotte county — but they, for the present, were rather neutral — 
until, as will hereafter be seen — they were forced to take a deter- 
mined stand. 

On the other hand, Governor Clinton, inflexibh^ determined to pre- 
serve the disputed jurisdiction, was exerting himself to the utmost 
for that object. In the spring of this year (1781) he transmitted a 
special message to the Legislature, then sitting at Poughkeepsie, con- 
taining important information respecting the designs of the Vermon- 
ters, by which it appeared that Dr. Smith (a brother of the historian, 
Joshua Hett Smith of Andre fame) was actively engaged in foment- 
ing disaffection, and had held interviews with Ethan Allen, upon the 
subject in Albany. Allen, it is true, pretended, at the time, that his 
visit to Albany was solely for the purpose of waiting on the Governor 
to receive his answer to a petition Avhich the X^ermonters had laid 
before the Assembly ; but Clinton wisely mistrusted his errand and 
refused either to see him or hold any intercourse with him whatever. 
In order, moreover, to bring the question of jurisdiction to the test, 
several persons, by the Governor's order, were arrested later in the 
summer, within the territory of the Grants and within, also, what is 
now Washington County under the pretext of some military delin- 
quenc}-. This proceeding was applying the brand to the powder. 
Governor Clinton lost no time in writing to Captain Van Rensselaer 
demanding the release of the prisoners taken from the Grants, assert- 
ing their "determination to maintain the government they had set 
up," and threatening that, in the event of an invasion of the territory 
of New York by the common enemv, unless these prisoners were 
given up, they would render no assistance to New York. Nor was 
this all. While the county was threatened by invasions from the 
north and west, the spirit of the \"ermont insiirgents began to spread 
among the militia in the northern towns east of the Hudson, belong- 
ing to General Gansevoort's own brigade. In fact the situation was, 
at this time, most serious; for, on the one hand General Starke was 
calling upon him for assistance against the enemy apparently ap- 
proaching from Lake Cham-|Dlain and Skeensl)orough, and on the 



GENERAL GANSEVOORT'S PERPLEXITY. 291 

other. Governor Clinton was directing him to quell the spirit of in- 
subordination along- the line of the New Hampshire Grants.' and both 
of these duties were to be discharged with a knowledge that a portion 
of his own command was infected with the same insurgent spirit. 
Added to this, he was privately informed that the Green Mountain 
Boys were maturing a plot for his abduction. Meanwhile, the gov- 
ernment of the Grants had effected an organization of their own 
militia, and disclosures had been made to the government of New 
York, imputing to the leading men of the Grants a design, in the 
event of a certain contingency, of throwing the weight of their own 
forces into the scale of the Crown. This was the position of affairs 
when Governor Clinton addressed to General Gansevoort the follow- 
ing letter: 

" PorCHKKKKSlK, OcT. iS, I781. 

" Dear Sir; 

Your letter of the 15th instant, was delivered to me on the evening of the lOth. 
I have delayed answering it, in hopes that the Legislature would ere this have 
formed a quorum, and that I might have availed myself of their advice on the sub- 
ject to which it relates; but as this is not yet the case, and it is tuicertain when I 
shall be enabled to lay the matter before them, I conceive it might be improper 
longer to defer expressing my own sentiments to you on this subject. 

" The different unwarrantable attempts, during the summer, of the people on 
the Cirants to establish then- usurped jurisdiction, even beyond their former claim, 
and the repetition of it (alluded to in your letter) in direct opposition to a resolution 
of Congress injurious to the state and favorable to their project of independence, 
and at a time when the common enemy are advancing, can only be accounted for 
by what other parts of their conduct have given us too much reason to suspect 
disaffection to the common cause. On my part, I have hitherto shown a disposi- 
tion to evade entering into any altercation with them, that might, in its most re- 
mote consequences, give encouragement to the enemy, and expose the frontier 
settlements to their ravages ; and from these considerations alone I have submitted 
to insults which otherwise would not have been borne with, and I could have 
wished to have continued this line of conduct until the approaching season would 
have secured tis against the incursions of the common enemy. But, as from the 
■accounts contained in Colonel Van Rensselaer's letter, it would appear that the mil- 
itia embodying under Mr. Chittenden's orders are for the service of the enemy, and 
that their first object was to make you a prisoner, it would be unjustifiable to suffer 
them to proceed. It is therefore my desire that you maintain your authority 
throughout your brigade, and for this purpose, that you carry the laws of the state 

' As I have several times stated in the text, I wish it to be understood, that when I mention 
the '■ JVezv Hatnpshire Grants," it takes in the present WashiittiioH County. Hence, this discussion, 
as I have said, is by no means irrelevant. 



292 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

into execution against those who shall presume to disobey your lawful orders. I 
would only observe that these sentiments are founded on an idea that the accounts 
given by Colonel Van Rensselaer in his letter may be relied on ; it being still my 
earnest desire, for the reasons above explained, not to do anything that will bring 
matters to extremities, at least before the close of the campaign, if it can consis- 
tently be avoided. * * * 

" I am, with great respect and esteem, 

" Dear sir, your most obedt. serv't., 

" (il'.dKCI''. Cl.l-NTON. 

"Brig- Gen. Gaiisei'oort." ^ 

The apprehension oi Clinton was by no means oronndless. Indeed, 
there was, at this time, too much reason to fear that treason was 
•deepl}^ and extensively at work, and from the tempers of great num- 
bers of the people, and the carriage of the disaffected there was just 
■cause to dread that, should the enemy again invade the country, 
•either from the north or the west his standard would be joined by 
much larger numbers of people than would have rallied beneath it 
at any former period. These fears, moreover, received additional 
confirmation by the statements, under oath, of two prisoners who had 
■escaped from Canada in the autumn oi the present year — John Edgar 
and David Abeel. The substance of the statements of these men 
was, that several of the leading men of the New Hampshire Grants 
(in which category many of the inhabitants of what is now Washing- 
ton County should be included) were forming an alliance with the 
King's officers in Canada. Among these leaders were E^than Allen 
and his brother Ira and the two Fays, and their consultations with 
the British agents were sometimes held at Castleton, on the (irants 
and sometimes in Canada. Mr. Abeel "s information was that the 
Grants were to furnish the King with fifteen hundred men, to be 
under the command of Ethan Allen, who was then in Canada upon 
that business. A third account, submitted to the New York Legisla- 
ture at this time by Clinton, was somewhat different and more in de- 
tail. In this paper, it was stated, " First, that the territory claimed 
by the Vermonters should be formed into a distinct colony or govern- 
ment; secondly, that the form of government should be similar to 
that of ConnecticiU, save that the nomination of the governor should 
be vested in the Crown; thirdly, that they should be allowed to re- 
main neutral, unless the war should be carried within their own tcrri- 

' M.S. letter, in the author's possession. 



ETHAN ALLEN'S TREASONABLE DESIGNS. 293 

toi'v; fourth!}', they were to raise two battalions, to be m the pay of 
the Crown, but to be called into service only for the defense of the 
colony; and fifthly, they were to be allowed a free trade with Canada. 
General Haldimand had not deemed himself at liberty to decide defin- 
itely upon propositions of so much importance, and had, accordingly, 
transmitted them to England for the Royal consideration.' An answer 
was then expected. Such was the purport of the intelligence, and 
such, moreover, was the weight of the testimony, that Governor 
Clinton did not hesitate to assert that they "'proved a treasonable and 
dangerous intercourse and connection between the leaders of the 
revolt in the northeastern part of the state and the common en'imy. " 

Indeed, Governor Clinton was entirely correct in his surmises; and 
there can be no question that both Ethan Allen and his brother Ira, 
had in contemplation the turning over of the present State of Vermont 
and "Washington County to the British, and no sophistry on the part 
of Slade and other historians of A'ermont will shake this belief. In- 
deed, if space permitted, this statement could very easily be proved, 
but as I have it not at my disposal the reader must be satisfied with my 
statement. The fact is, that Ethan Allen, like Arnold, who did at the 
outset, so much for the Colonial cause, was, like him, ready to sell out 
to Great Britain — and was actuaUy as much of a traitor as Arnold — 
though the latter, having so much of theatrical display, was painted 
on the canvass of history as the monster of all the Revolution. " 

The Legislature of the Grants assembled at Charleston, N. H., in 
October, about which time General St. Leger, agreeably to an arrang- 
ment with Allen and Eay, ascended the lake with a strong force to 
Ticonderoga, where he rested. Meanwhile, a rumor of the capture of 
Cornwallis and his army at Yorktown had such an effect upon the 
A^ermonters as to cause Allen and Fay to write to the British Com- 
missioners, with St. Leger, that it would be imprudent at that partic- 
ular juncture to promulgate the Royal proclamation, and urging delay 
to a more auspicious moment. The messenger with these despatches 
had not been longer than an hour at the headquarters of St. Leger at 

' Canadiim archives. First scries. 

= Xor were Allen andArnold the only ones who showed the while feather! Kven Duchow. 
the Chaplain of the Continental Congress, wrote to Washington (then at Valley ForKel uf,iiin>i him 
to j^o over to the Hritish eause ! 



294 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Ticonderog-a ' before the rumor respecting Cornwallis was confirmed 
by an "Express."" All ideas of further operations in that quarter 
were, therefore, instantly abandoned, and before evening of the same 
day, St. Leger's troops were re-embarked, and, with a fair wind he 
sailed immediately back to St. Johns. 

With the return of St. Leger to St. Johns, all active operations 
cea.sed with the enemy at the north, but the difficulties of the state 
governinent with the New Hampshire Grants were on the increase 
and the controversy ran so high that by the first of December (1781) 
an insurrection broke out in the regiments of Colonel John Van 
Rensselaer and Colonel Henry K. Van Rensselaer in the northeastern 
towns of the state. These disturbances arose in Schaghticoke, Hoosic, 
St. Coick's and the parts adjacent (viz. Washington County) belong- 
ing then to the County of Albany, but claimed by the government of 
the Grants. General Gansevoort was apprised of the insurrection the 
fifth. He at once directed Colonels Yates ^ and H. K. Van Rensselaer 
whose regiments at that time were the least disafiiected, to collect 
such troops as they could, and repair to St. Coick's to the assistance of 
Col. John Van Rensselaer. An express being dispatched to Clinton, at 
Poughkeepsie, with the news and a request for directions what course 
to pursue in the emergency, the return of the messenger brought 
very explicit orders from the indomitable governor. "I perfectly 
approve of your conduct," wrote Clinton, " and have only to add that, 
should the force already detached prove insufficient to quell the in- 
surrection, you will make such additions to it as to render it effectual. 
I have transmitted to General Robert Van Rensselaer the information 
and have directed him, in case it should be necessary on your appli- 
cation to give assistance from his brigade." Although the fact had 
not been stated in the dispatches forwarded to Governor Clinton, that 
the movement had originated in the Grants, yet the governor was at 
no loss at once to attribute it to the "usurped government of that 
pretended state," and it was his resolute determination, as he ex- 

■ Should the reader like to hear more of St. Leger, he is referred to my " Burgoyne's Cam- 
paign," and his subsequent career is really worth a perusal. 

2 This word "Express" which occurs so frequently in this, and contemporary histories, has 
not the signiticance of the present meaning. It was confined to a messenger— whether Indian or 
White— who undertook to break through the enemy's lines and carry the intelligence thus sent 
forth. 

=• The great-grandfather of Hon. Austin A. Vates of Schenectady, N. Y., a well known lawyer 
of that city. 



CLINTON FAILS TO vSUBDUE THE GRANTS. 295 

pressed it, to oppose foree to foree, and in ret^ard to the Grants, 
themselves to "repel force by force." On the i6th, the day after 
receiving- Clinton's instructions, (iansevoort took the field himself/ 
repairing, in the first instance to the headquarters of Starke at Fort 
Edward, in order to obtain a detachment of troops and a field piece. 
But Starke was lukewarm; his troops, he said, \vere too naked to 
move from their quarters, and he pleaded the impropriety of his in- 
terfering without an order from General Heath. ' Gansevoort then 
crossed over to the east side of the river in order to arouse the militia 
in Hoosic. His efforts, however, were fruitless. None of the militia 
responded, and only eighty men could be depended on out of the four 
regiments of Yates, Henry K. Van Rensselaer and Van Vechten. 
Instead of the latter regiment, only the Colonel, a few officers and 
one private could be prevailed on to march. LTnder these discourag- 
ing circumstances, Gansevoort was compelled to relinquish the expe- 
dition, and the insurgents — among them as I have said, and to their 
shame be it recorded, the people of Washington County — remained 
the victors, to the no small terror t>f those of the loyal inhabitants, 
who vere well disposed, inasmuch as thev were apprehensive of being 
taken prisoners and carried aw^ay, as had been the case with others, 
should they refuse to take the oath of allegiance to the government 
of \"ermont. But, although Clinton had thus failed to subdue the 
sturdy mountaineers — a task that the Colonial governors of New York 
before him for thirty years had been unable to accomplish — his ill- 
success was owing to the force of circumstances, and not to lack of 
ability. His position, during all of this controversy, had been most 
trying, for this trouble with the Vermonters was, in effect, a serious 
insurrection within his own state, calling for his closest attention, 
occurring, too, at a time when he was endeavoring by every possible 
means to assist the general government in her war against the com- 
mon enemy. This fact was recognized bv Washington who, through- 
out the war, and to the close of his life, continued to place implicit 
confidence in Clinton's judgment. Nor, were these marks of confi- 
dence merely of respect to his professional opinions. The cordial 
regard in which he was held bv the Commander-in-chief .is shown, 

' .MS Letter fi'um ( iansevoort in the HUthur's iidssession. 

" While it sjoes without sayinj^ that no suspicion whatevef of treachery can be alleired ai^ainst 
Stai'ke, yet it is evident that he liad been tintced witli syinpattiy for .A.llen and I'"ay. 



296 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

not only by the solicitude with which the latter watched over the 
safety of his person, but in the circumstance, that almost his first act 
on retiring- into private life, was to write to him as one upon whose 
affectionate sympathy he could rely. "The scene, my dear friend," 
said he in a letter to Clinton, written three days after his arrival at 
Mount Vernon, " is at leng-th closed. I feel myself eased of a load of 
public care and hope to spend the remainder of my days in cultivating- 
the affections of good men, and in the practice of the domestic vir- 
tues." ' 

Meanwhile, during all of this acrimonious controversy which has 
been just narrated, the people of Charlotte County very naturally, in 
puzzled bewilderment, were anxious to know what would be their 
status — whether, their county would ultimately belong to Vermont or 
New York." 

But upon one thing they were resolved, viz. : to have the name of 
the county changed, and for the reason that the long and bloody 
struggle of the Revolutionary war, with its accompaniments of inva- 
sion, rapine, house-burning and Indian outrage, had very naturally 
caused most bitter feelings among the people against everything- 
which savored in the least of English name or origin. " Even the 
name of Queen Charlotte," says a writer, "was not agreeable to the 
inhabitants of Charlotte County, whose farms had been devastated by 
Queen Charlotte's husband." Still more odious was the name of 
Tryon County — derived from the tyrannical and blood-thirsty governor 
of Ne-w York whose raids upon the defenceless towns of Connecticut 
on the Sound were yet held in shuddering horror — to the settlers of 
the Mohawk valley, who had been subjected to pillage and massacre 
during all of the war by Tories and Indians in British employ. Ac- 
cordingl}^ on the second day of April, 1784, the New York Legisla- 
ture, in compliance with a petition signed by the most representative 
men of these two counties, passed an act changing the two names just 
mentioned. This act was a model of brevity and precision (which, by 
the way, it might be well for the Assemblyman of the present day to 
copy) and. after the enacting clause, read as follows : 

1 AntograJ>h letter of Gcncntl Washington formerly in my pos.session. 

'■^ Indeed, had these good p. 'ople of Charlotte county been accustomed to the slan,i< of the 
present day, they undoubtedly would have e.\pressed their feelings in that inelegant, though 
verv expressive phrase, '" Where are we at ? " 



COUNTY FIRST NAMED WASHINGTON. 297 

" From and after the passage of this act, the County of Tyron shall 
be known by the name of Montgomery and the County of Charlotte 
by the name of Washington." 

"Thus," says Johnson, "the most honored appellation known to 
Americans was conferred vipon this county. The name was not as 
common then as now and we believe this is -the oldest Washington 
County in the United States — a veritable patriarch with nearly forty 
namesakes among counties, besides an almost countless host of 
towns, villages and post offices." In the same year also (1784), the 
township of Hartford was formed from Westfield (now Fort Ann) 
and the settlemefit of Dresden was begun. 

The doubts of the people of Washington County, however, regard- 
ing to which state they were finally to belong were soon set at rest. 
Vermont, in 1790, overawed by public opinion, "drew in her horns," 
and yielding to New Hampshire her right of exercising her jurisdic- 
tion over all the towns east of the Connecticut river, she, though not 
very gracefully, made it known that the management by New York 
state of Charlotte and Albany counties would not be interfered with. 
In the same year the long drawn out contest between New York and 
the New Hampshire Grants was finally settled. Governor Clinton, 
as stated, having completely failed in his efforts to extend the author- 
ity of his state over the Green Mountain Boys, made a virtue of 
necessity, and on the 6th of March a law was passed by the New 
York Legislature ceding to Vermont "all claim to political jurisdic- 
tion and also to ownership of the land within that state, and appoint- 
ing commissioners to meet with others from Vermont and settle the 
boundaries between the two states." 

This commission met in the following October, and agreed on a 
boundary, "beginning at the northeast corner of Massachusetts and 
running thence northerly along the western bounds of the towns of Pow- 
nal, Bennington, Shaftsbury, Arlington, Sandgate, Rupert, Wells and 
Poultney, as then held, to the Poultney river; thence down the middle 
of the deepest channel of Poultney river to East Bay, and thence 
down the middle of East Bay and Lake Champlain to the forty-fifth 
parallel of north latitude. It will thus be seen that this boundary 
forms the southwest corner of Salem northward to Clinton county, 
and also forms the eastern boundary of Washington County. It was 
further agreed by the commissioners that "Vermont should pay to- 

[37] 



298 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

New York the sum of $30,000, to be divided amongf those who had 
lost by buying land from New York within the disputed territory." 
This was but a small fraction of the value of the lands patented by 
the New Yorkers, but, as has been remarked, " it probably served as a 
salve to the wounded dignity of the state." ' " Chancing to have met 
vi^ith a list of the civil officers of Washington County for 1790," says 
Johnson in his admirable history of that county, "we reproduce 
here, as it is. perhaps, the only complete list which has come down 
from the last century — most of the early papers of the Board having 
been destroyed. It is as follows: Salem, Hamilton McCollister; Ar- 
gyle, William Reed; Queensbury (now in Warren County) William 
Roberts; Kingsbury, Seth Allen; Westfield (Fort Anne) George 
Wray; Whitehall, Cornelius Jones; Hampton, John How; Granville, 
Timothy Leonard; Hebron, John Hamilton." 

In 1 791 Vermont was finally admitted into the Union as one of the 
original thirteen states, "thus putting the seal of Federal authority 
on the settlement arrived at this year," Washington County thus be- 
came a border county along all of its great length. By the same act, 
the town of Cambridge, comprising the present towns of Jackson and 
White Creek, was transferred to Washington County; while that part 
of the towns of Saratoga and Stillwater, lying east of the Hudson, was 
formed into a new town, by the name of Easton, and was also an- 
nexed to Washington. " We do not know," says Johnson, " but we 
imagine very strongly that these transfers were managed by General 
John Williams of Salem, then an influential member of the State Sen- 
ate, so as to strengthen the south end of the county, and get the coun- 
ty seat permanently fixed at Salem." "At all events," continues 
Johnson, " that same year a petition was circulated asking the Legis- 

' The last two clauses of the act, passed by the Vermont Legislature, October 28, 1790, read as 
follows : " It is hereby enacted by the general assembly of the state of Vermont, that the people 
of the state of Vermont on or before the ist day of June, 1794, pay the state of New York $30,000. 

"And it is hereby further enacted that all grants, charters or patents of land lying within 
the state of Vermont, made by or under the government of the late colony of New York — except 
such grants, charters or patents, made by, or under the government of the late province of New 
Hampshire — are hereby declared null and void, and incapable of being given in evidence, in any 
court of law within the state." Siade's " Vermont State Papers." 

The money received from Vermont was divided in 1799 among the New York claimants, from 
which it would appear as if the " Ring" — for they had " Rings" in that day also — received the 
bulk of the award. Thus, Goldsborough Banyar of Albany (an old friend of Sir William Johnson), 
and a large landed proprietor in Cambridge received 17,218, while the settler, Charles Hutchins. 
whose lands had been seized, and his house destroyed by Ethan Allen and his band, received 
$9.98. The other residents of Washington Covyity benefitted by the fund were Ebenezer Clarke, 
$37.42; Archibald Campbell, I49.91, and Samuel Stevens, I653.63. 



BOUNDS OF WASHINGTON COUNTY ESTABLISHED. 299 

latiire to fix the county-seat at Salem, and to authorize the building 
of a court-house and jail at that point, there having been no county 
buildings previous to that time." Fort Edward and the neighboring 
towns, as a matter of course, resisted this movement. Edward Sav- 
age of Salem (father of the celebrated Chief Justice Savage) and also 
a State Senator at the same time was, as might be inferred, greatly 
opposed to such a change. But, while Salem and Fort Edward were 
thus struggling for the honors of the county-seat, some of the river 
people desired to have it located at Fort Miller. The Legislature, 
however, avoided a decision by a device so frequently resorted to since 
that time, and at length, permanently incorporated in the law — that 
is, they authorized the Board of Supervisors to fix the locality. The 
Board accordingly met and located the county-seat at Salem. 

It was not, however, until 1812 that the exact line of Washington 
County was finally settled by commissioners from both states. The 
New York commissioners were Smith Thompson, Simeon de Witt 
and George Tibbitts,' and with this act the long dispute between New 
York and Vermont may be said to have ended. The following year,, 
moreover, the boundaries and status of Washington County were per- 
manently fixed, for on the 12th of March, 18 13, the County of Warren 
was established. This reduced the area of Washington County to the- 
limits which it has ever since retained. It also brought the county- 
seat at Sandy Hill, within a mile of the county line; but as the court- 
house was already built, that location has been able to hold its. ground 
against all rivals ever since. 

' See Notes to New York Session Laws, April 15, 1814. 



300 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

CHAPTER XX. 

1791 — 1810. 

Settlers of Washington County Resume Their Regular Vocations — The Causes 
Which Led to the Changing of the County Seat From Fort Edward to Sandy 
Hill — Amusing Anecdotes Regarding this Change — Extracts from President 
Dwight's Journal of His Tours Through Washington County in 1806 and 1810 
— His Vivid Description of the Social Status of Argyle and Cambridge from 
Observations Derived from His Visit — The Statistics Given Being of a Most 
Valuable and Interesting Character. 

After the Revolutionary War, no exciting incidents — that is of un- 
usual moment — occurred in Washington County for many years. Of 
course there were many local events which were of interest to the 
people of the county and, also, many political squabbles and un- 
seemly wrangles in the elections from time to time of judges, senators 
and assemblymen; but, as a general rule, the settlers, thoroughly ex- 
hausted by the border warfare so long prevailing, were content to till 
their farms and smoke their pipes under their own vines and fig trees 
after the day's work was done — leaving to a few politicians the politi- 
cal work of the county. A few men of more than usual enterprise, 
and actuated by a most commendable public spirit, endeavored, it is 
true, to increase the wealth of Washington County by originating 
various schemes, nearly all of which, from the causes I have stated — 
viz. : the stoical indifference of the farmers — were total failures. Of 
these different enterprises, however, perhaps the most noteworthy 
was one to improve the navigation of Wood Creek, by constructing a 
short canal so that the waters of the Hudson together with those of 
Lake Champlain might be connected; and towards this end, a very 
earnest effort was made by its promoters. Accordingly, " The North- 
ern Inland Lock Navigation Company" was incorporated — General 
Schuyler being one of the chief stockholders. General Williams, who 
had bought, it will be remembered, the escheated estate of Major 
Skeene of Whitehall, was also an active member and director of this 
"Northern Company." The latter began operations and, in June, 
1794, went so far as to advertise for proposals " for cleaning Halfway 
Brook from the present landing place to its juncture with Wood Creek 



CONTEMPT OF ADIEL SHERWOOD. 301 

from the junction aforesaid to the entrance of the canal at White- 
hall." Owing-, however, to a want of capital the company were 
obliged to stop work, and the desired communication was not made 
until more than thirty years later. 

But the good people of Washington County had at this time plenty 
of gossip with which to while away their extra leisure. Thus, quite 
an amusing anecdote is told by Johnson as to the manner in which 
the permanent county-seat was changed from Fort Edward to Sandy 
Hill. He says: " In 1796, a term of court was held, as one had been 
each year for nine years, at the hotel of Adiel Sherwood, at Fort Ed- 
ward. This gentleman, w^ho, it will be remembered, was the same 
who commanded as Captain at Fort Anne, in 1780, now united the 
glittering dignity of a Lieutenant-colonel of militia with the humble 
duties of a village tavern-keeper. The court appears to have been 
held in his dining-room. One day, as the dinner hour approached. 
Colonel Sherwood, who had, perhaps, become disgruntled at some- 
thing the honorable court had done, abruptly entered the room and 
peremptorily ordered the jvidges to vacate it, as he desired to have the 
table set for dinner. 

"Judges were important personages then, and, as has been stated, 
the judges of Washington County were its most prominent citizens. 
That, after having been allowed to set up their court in a room they 
should be thus dictatorially ordered out of it, even by a Lieutenant- 
colonel of militia, was almost enough to paral)'ze them with horror 
and indignation. Sherwood, however, made so much ado that the 
court adjourned for the time being; but, at their next session, they 
proceeded to make a signal example of this irreverent offender. The 
record reads as follows: ' Adiel Sherwood, having been guilty of con- 
tempt, it is ordered that the said Adiel Sherwood be committed to the 
common jail of Washington County for the space of fifteen days.' 

"It is highly probable that this contempt of Colonel Sherwood had 
an important effect on the county-seat question, for three of the in- 
sulted judges were then Senators and, although the courts had been 
held at his house for nine years, at the very next session of the Legis- 
lature the place of holding them was changed to the hotel of Mary 
Dean, in Sandy Hill. The consequence has been that Sandy Hill 
has been a county seat ever since and Fort Edward has not." 

It would seem, moreover, that the question of good roads attracted 
as much of the public attention then as at the present time, though 



302 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

there was then no organization of " Bicyclists " to petition the Legis- 
lature, and by their votes threaten with dire displeasure and non- 
election to office all men who refused to vote as they dictated. By a 
law passed in March, 1799, the general management of the roads in 
the county was vested in three superintendents of highways, appointed 
by the council of appointment. To these superintendents appeals lay 
from the town commissioners. Still another important movement 
in regard to highways was the beginning of turnpikes. " The North- 
ern Turnpike Company," the first operated within this county, was 
incorporated on the ist day of April, 1799. It had for its object the 
building of a turnpike from Lansingburgh, through Cambridge, 
Salem and Hebron, to the house of Hezakiah Searling in the town of 
Granville, and among its directors were William Hay, Edward Wells, 
Jr., D avid Long, Martin Van Buskirk, John Williams and Edward 
Savage. The company immediately went to work and not only built 
the road to the designated point, but continued it northward, through 
Hampton, to the state line, connecting with a similar road to Bur- 
lington, Vermont. This company also built a branch from Salem 
northwestward to the state line, and another from Granvilie to White- 
hall. 



DR. DWIGHT'S TOURS IN WASHINGTON COUNTY IN 1806— 



Perhaps the most instructive means of obtaining an insight into 
the physical and social conditions of any county is. by reading the 
travels of persons who have been through it, especially if they are 
men of shrewdness of observation and honesty of purpose. It is for 
this reason, that I now present to the reader two accounts of tours 
through Washington County made respectively in 1806 and 18 10, by 
that distinguished traveller and educator, Timothy Dwight, perhaps 
the most illustrious of all Yale's presidents. I am sure, also, that the 
Washington County reader — if he has been in rapport with me through 
all of this history — will appreciate the following extracts from Presi- 
dent Dwight's Travels — more especially, as the work has, for very 
many years, been out of print, and is now very difficult of access — it 
being found in only a very few private and public libraries. They 
will be found of intense interest and well worth careful perusal. 



TRAVEL'S OF PRESIDENT DWIGHT. 303 

President Dwight, therefore, regarding his tour through Washing- 
ton County, in 1806, writes as follows: ' 

"From Fair Haven we entered the township of Hampton, Wash- 
ington County, in the state of New York. Our road lay along Pult- 
ney [sic] river, through a succession of beautiful intervals, divided 
into a number of valuable farms and ornamented by several neat 
houses. The hill immediately west of this river is also near its 
northern termination, an elegant piece of ground, well cultivated and 
crowned in a picturesque manner by a church on its summit. The 
mouth of Pultney river forms East Bay, one of the southern ter- 
minations of Lake Champlain, and the principal part of the southern 
boundary of Fair Haven. The other parts of the township of Hamp- 
ton are rough and disagreeable. In 1790 this township contained 
463 inhabitants; in 1800, 700, and in 1810, 820. 

"In the year 1806 we crossed Pultney river, about nine or ten 
miles from Granville. * * * This place, which is situated imme- 
diately south of Hampton, is a much pleasanter and better township 
than Pultney. A considerable part of it lies on the branches of the 
Pawlet river, which has its origin in Dorset, in the county of Rut- 
land, Vt., and empties its waters into Lake Champlain at South Bay. 
The houses are built in a scattered manner, yet there is a small vil- 
lage, principally on the eastern side of one of these branches. Its 
general appearance is that of moderate thrift. It presents a fine view 
of the range of mountains between Lake Champlain and Lake 
George. A revival of religion took place here in 1806. 

" Granville, like most other townships in the state of New York, is 
extensive, and contained in 1790, 2,240 inhabitants; in 1800, 3,175, 
and in 18 10, 3,717. 

" We dined at Granville, and after dinner rode through Westfield 
[now Fort Ann] and Kingsbury to Sandy Hill. Westfield is a very 
large and unpleasant tract of land. The soil is chiefly clay, and in- 
differently fertile, the surface composed of hills and valleys, devoid of 
beauty, the settlements recent and thinly scattered, the houses chiefly 
log huts, and the inhabitants poor and unthrifty." To complete the 
dullness of this tract, the few streams which we saw were exactly 

' These extracts, as will be seen, give some very valuable statistics. 

* It is very pleasant to note in this connection, that the course of years has brought a decided 
change in this regard— the inhabitants of Westfield (Fort Ann) being now among the most 
thrifty people of W^ashington County. 



304 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY 

like those mentioned in the description of Addison and Bridport [in 
Vermont.] Most of them were successions of puddles, lying in a 
loathsome bed of clay between steep, ragg-ed banks, and of the color 
of dirty suds. So offensive were these waters that, although dis- 
tressed with heat and thirst, our horses, whenever they approached 
them in order to drink, suddenly drew back with indications of dis- 
gust. A person accustomed only to the limpid streams of New Eng- 
land can form no conception of the disagreeableness of this fact. We 
ourselves suffered from it greatly, for although parched with thirst 
and faint with the unusual heat, we were unable, for a great distance, 
to find anything which we could drink. 

" Westfield contained in 1790, 2,103 inhabitants; ^^ 1800, 2,502, and 
in 1810, 3, 1 10. 

" In this tract we crossed Wood Creek and entered the Skeensbor- 
ough road, about eight miles below that village. We had taken this 
circuitous route to avoid that settlement, which we were told was 
distressed with sickness. For some time our road lay along the 
northern bank of this stream and became much more agreeable, par- 
ticularly as we were sheltered by a continued forest from the intense 
beams of the sun. 

" About a mile before we arrived at Fort Anne, [that is, the village\ 
over a hill, jutting into the creek [Wood Creek] named * Battle-hill.' 
Here the Americans, retreating before the army of General Burgoyne, 
attacked a British regiment, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Hill, 
with great spirit and would probably have taken or destroyed the 
whole corps had they not been deceived into a belief that their ene- 
mies had received a reinforcement.' 

" At the village of Fort Anne we stopped to examine the spot where 
the fortification, formerly known by this name, was erected. It was 
built in order to facilitate an intended expedition against Canada in 
1709, and stood just at the bend where the eastern course of the creek 
commences. It was merely an enclosure of strong palisades, suffi- 
cient, however, to check the savages in their incursions from South 
Bay upon Hudson River. For canoes and batteaux the creek is navi- 
gable to this spot. The stumps of the palisades, if I may so call them, 
were still remaining, and recalled to my mind some of the painful 



' For a detailed account of this action the reader is referred to the chapter treating upon this 
battle. 



BURGOYNE'S MILITARY ROAD. 305 

impressions which it had received concerning- Indian ravages in the 
years of childhood. 

"The village of Fort Anne is built chiefly on a single street, run- 
ning- from north to south. T^Tieliouses are recently, and for so new a 
settlement, neatly built. The inhabitants hope that this will here- 
after be a place of considerable business. 

"From Fort Anne to Sandy Hill, ten miles, the soil is principally 
clay. About three miles of the road are causeyed [causewayed] with 
l^^gSj [we call them now "corduroy-roads"] — a work of immense 
labor, performed, if we may trust public accounts, by the army of 
General Burgoyne; but, as I was told on the spot, by the American 
army. I have also been repeatedly told, and I presume with truth, 
that this causey [causeway] was built by the British and Provincial 
troops in the last Canadian war.' The ground is so miry that an army 
could not have passed over it without a causey. In the Revolutionary 
war, the Americans probably repaired it, and the soldiers of General 
Burg-oyne may have added to the repairs. The state of the ground 
has been also exhibited as so savage and difficult, so broken with 
creeks and marshes, that the army of General Burgoyne could hardly 
advance more than a mile in a day. There is not a single stream here 
of any importance. It is further said, that this army was obliged to 
construct no less than forty bridges. The word ' bridges,' here must, 
however, denote little passages over rills of the smallest magnitude, 
for there is not a single bridge, of any size on the road. Even with 
this explanation, the number must be doubled, if not tripled. The 
principal difficulty found here by General Burg-oyne was, I presume, 
this: the Americans in their retreat felled as many trees as the}^ could 
across the road, and the army was obliged to take this road because 
there was no other. To the British soldiers, who were unskilled in 
cutting timber, the removal of these obstructions must have been a 
very laborious and difficult work. Had there not been a causey here 
before this period, the Americans, themselves, could not have passed 
through this country, for the marsh and the forest must have ob- 
structed their passage as mucli as the British. But, as they arc accus- 

' Dr. Dwig-ht, or rather his informant, is here in error. As I have shown in my chapters on 
Hurgoyne's Campaign, all of these roads— extending down to Stillwater, were built through the 
woods by Burgoyne's skillful engineers— and as I then stated, all of these roads used at the pres- 
ent day, follow out precisely those made through the primeval forest by Burgoyne's army. 

I :^8J 



306 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

tomed to labors of this nature, they think little of them. Hence, 
before General Burgoyne marched through this tract, the world never 
heard anything concerning the tremendous obstacles, which here so 
formidably opposed the progress of an army.' As to the savage na- 
ture of the place, there is a marsh here, not a whit more embarrassing 
than marshes generally are ; and the forest, elsewhere, is much less 
shaggy and difficult than a great part of American forests. The 
causey is in tolerable preservation and with an additional covering of 
earth would furnish a pleasant road. 

" Kiijgsbury i_s_a_large township, containing, besides^^her settle- 
ments, two villages, Kingsbury and SandyHHl. The village of 
Kingsbury is built on high ground, sloping handsomely towards the 
southeast. From twenty to thirty houses are assembled here, if I do 
not misremember, around a small, decent church. Their appearance 
indicates that the inhabitants are in comfortable circumstances. An 
extensive and in some respects interesting prospect is presented on 
this spot to the eye of the traveller. 

" Sandy Hill lies about five miles from Kingsbury on the Hudson, 
where that river, terminating its eastern course, makes a remarkable 
bend to the south, a direction which it follows from this place to the 
ocean. The site of the village is a pine plain, elevated from one hun- 
dred to two hundred feet above the bed of the river. It contains, 
perhaps, twenty houses, several of them neat. The two great roads, 
from the eastern side of Lake Champlain and the western side of 
Lake George, in their progress towards New York, unite here and 
make it a place of frequent resort and some trade. It is often visited 
by gentlemen and ladies in their excursions to Lake George ; a scene 
of pre-eminent beauty, which I shall have occasion to describe more 
particularly hereafter. We lodged in a miserable inn, the proprietor 
of a much better one being occupied in building a house, and there- 
fore, unable to receive us. 

"In 1790 Kingsbury contained i, 120 inhabitants; in 1800^ i,65j, and 
in ]8io, 2,272. 



1 This account by President Dwight would seem rather to belittle the herculean efforts of 
Schuyler to retard the British march, as related in a previous chapter. Still, it should be remem- 
bered, that even Dwight was, as a New England man, greatly prejudiced against any good com- 
ing out of New York ! 



GLENS FALLS IN i-8o6. 307 

"Thursday, October 4th, 1806, we left Sandy Hill' and rode two 
miles and a half up the Hudson to see the cataract called, from a res- 
pectable man living- in the neighborhood, Glen's Falls. The road to 
this spot passes along the north bank of the river. 

" The rock ov^r which the Hudson descends at this place, is a vast 
mass of blue lime-stone, horizontally stratified, and, I believe, exactly 
resembles that which produces the Falls of Niagara.' How far this 
stratum extends northward and westward I am ignorant. Down the 
river it reaches certainly as far as Fort EdM^ard. 

" The river at this place runs due east and is forty rods in breadth. 
Almost immediately above the cataract is erected a dam, eight or ten 
feet in height, for the accommodation of a long train of mills on the 
north, and a small number on the south bank. Below the dam. the 
mass of limestone extends, perhaps thirty or forty rods down the mid- 
dle of the stream, leaving a channel on each side. That on the north 
is about one-third of the breadth of the river; that on the south, where 
narrowest, is perhaps a tenth and, where widest, is divided into two 
by another part of the rock. The breadth of both, taken altogether, 
is not far from that of the north channel. 

"The part of this rock which is nearest to the dam, is washed by 
the stream, and its surface is wrought everywhere into small figures 
resembling shells.^ A short distance below the dam it is covered 
with earth for about twelve or fifteen rods each way and, to a consid- 
erable extent, with pines and underwood. Below the road which, 
between the bridges, crosses this ground, the rock is divided into two 
arms, with a deep channel between them hollowed out by the stream 
and by the weather. One bridge crosses the north channel and two 
the south, in a direction from northwest to southeast. 

" The perpendicular descent of the water at this place is seventy 
feet. The forms in which it descends are various, beyond those of 

' Althoujihi it may not be entirely germane to speak of this, yet I cannot refram, in this con- 
nection, to say a word rejjarding the late Mrs. Charles Stone of Sandy Hill— who was ever— and, 
perhaps, more than any other resident of that place, speciallv interested in everything relating to 
the historical remini.scences of that village. As I have said before, in my account of Jane 
McCrea, she gave me much information, and I only deeply regret that she is not living to read 
this historv and my acknowledgment of her labors. 

'' In this the writer errs. The Glens Falls formation is the Trenton and the Niagara is a much 
later liinestone. 

^ These do not resemble shells. They are veritable shells— showing that the ocean, at one time, 
covered all of this part of the continent. Mr. C. C. Lester and myself have a number of these 
fossils in our cabinets. 



308 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

any other cataract within my knowledge. All the conceivable grada- 
tions of falling water, from the mighty torrent to the showery jet 
d'eau, are here united in a wonderful and fascinating combination. 
In the channel on the north side, twenty rods in breadth near the 
dam and about twelve at the bridge, the greatest mass of water des- 
cends in four principal streams, divided by three large prominences 
of the rock, and in several small ones. The prevailing appearance 
here is that of sublimity, as the river descends either in great sheets 
or violent torrents. There are, however, several fine cascades in this 
compartment, and the effect of the whole is not a little increased by 
innumerable streams, torrents and jets from the long succession of 
mills on the north shore. 

^' The southern division of this scene is, however, a still finer object 
than the northern. On the north side of this channel the river has 
worn a ragged, perpendicular chasm through the rock, about thirty 
feet in breadth, eight or ten rods in length and fifty or sixty feet in 
depth. Through this opening pours a single torrent in a mass of 
foam, and is joined by ten or twelve currents, rushing from the south- 
ern side with every variety of foam, and with a beauty and magnifi- 
cence incapable of being described. 

"On the eastern part of the island, below the road, the water has 
worn three passages beneath the surface quite through the rocky 
points which border the channel mentioned above; two through the 
•northern arm of the island, and one through the southern. These 
passages are about three rods in length, and sufficiently wide and 
high for a man to pass conveniently through them. The surface of 
the rock above them is smooth and entire. I was at a loss to conceive 
what cause has produced these passages, as their direction was exactly 
at right angles with the current. In the year 1802, when I visited 
these falls the third time, I found a fourth passage, cut through one 
of the same arms, in all respects similar to those which I have men- 
tioned. If it existed at all in the year 1798, it was so small that it 
was not only unobserved by us, btit had never been discovered by any 
of the neighboring inhabitants. So remarkable a fact induced me to 
search for the cause, and I soon became satisfied. This stratum of 
limestone, by means of the obliquity of other streets, the eye receives 
no impression of regularity. The houses [i. e. Fort Edward] are 
chiefly ancient structures of brick, in the Dutch style, the roofs sharp ; 



SARATOGA TO SANDY HILL. 309 

the ends toward the street and the architecture uncouth.' A great 
number of them have but one story. There are three churches here, 
a Dutch, a Presbyterian and an Episcopal — all of them ordinary build- 
ings. The town [Fort Edward] is compact, and one or two of the 
streets are paved. The number of inhabitants in this township was 
in 1790, 4,228 and in 1800, 5,289." 

In 1810, four years afterward, President D wight again passed 
through Washington County of which tour he writes as follows: 

"The journey from Saratoga to Sandy Hill is very pleasant, ex- 
cept that the road is indifferent in many places; apart of it being 
heavily encumbered with mud, and another part with sand. The 
face of the country is very similar to that, which I have already des- 
cribed. 

" Several of the intervals which we passed on this part of our jour- 
ney, exhibit strong proofs of the manner in which they were formed. 
A bare inspection of them evinced be3^ond debate, that they were at 
first islands, which rose above the surface at some distance from the 
bank and were gradually extended toward it. The part which finally 
united each to the bank was last formed, and continued to be a chan- 
nel to the stream longer than any other spot on the interval. Accord- 
ingly, this part of these grounds was almost without an exception 
lower than the rest. 

" Before the year 1783 there were few settlements in this region. 
The expedition of General Burgoyne obliged the inhabitants to fly, 
destroyed their buildings and fences, and plundered them of their 
cattle and their property. Since that event, the number of planters 
has greatly increased, and they have greatly advanced in prosperity 
and wealth. Northumberland, however, is still in an infant state; 
many of the houses being built of logs, the fields imperfectly cleared, 
the girdled trees remaining, and the enclosures forined of logs and 
rubbish. These proofs of a recent settlement will soon vanish and be 
followed by a superior cultivation. 

" Three miles above Carpenter's stood Fort Miller — a small picketed 
work, biiilt in 1756 or 1757 to check the incursions of the Savages. 
Its remains have almost disappeared' and the spot where it stood is 

' What will our friends of Fort Edward say to this! 
^ Not quite, as they are still (1900) plainly to be traced. 



310 WASHINGTON COUNTY': ITS HISTORY. 

now a cornfield.' At thi^ place there is a sprightly fall in the Hud- 
son, down which General Ptitnam is said, to have descended in a small 
-boat. Opposite this spot General Burgoyne spent nearly two months 
in his long- journey from Skeensborgugh to Saratoga. 

"We crossed the Hudson at Dumont's Ferry, and through a road 
in the township of . Argyle^ extremely miry, made our way to Fort 
Edward, where we stopped some time to examine the works. ^ 

"Fort Edward is distant from Albany forty-seven miles and from 
New York two hundred and three. A small, scattered, lean looking 
village is built in the neighborhood.^ 

"From Fort Edward, to Sandy Hill (three miles) the road, after 
ascending a long acclivity, passes over the plain on which that village 

is built. The evening I spent with Judge H , a member of the 

senate of this state. This gentleman gave me much useful informa- 
tion concerning the surrounding country and its inhabitants. 

" vSaturday, October 12, [18 10] Messrs. C and H left us and 

proceeded to Lake George. Mr. D and myself, intending to 

return to Carpenter's in the evening, stopped at Glens Falls, three 
miles on the road. It rained all night, and until ten in the morning. 
We were therefore late, and after spending an hour and a half at the 
falls, returned to Sandy Hill. The river was high, and all those fine 
varieties of water, which were so visible in the preceeding autumn, 
were lost in one general accumulation of force and grandeur. The 



• Dr. Dwight is mistaken as to the date of the building of Fort Miller, if indeed so pretentious 
a designation as a "Fort" can be given it. It was erected as a block-house to protect store- 
houses in 175s, at the same time as Fort Edward. The block-house at the " Second Carrying 
Place" was built under the eye of Colonel Miller — hence the name, and it is one of the very few 
places in the county that has retained the name originally given it to the present'day. " It is not 
probable," says Dr. Fitch, "that there ever was here any enclosure such as is commonly under- 
stood as a Fort. The block-house and store houses were built upon the flat at the west side of the 
Hudson at the head of the falls. This flat is protected upon three of its sides by the river, which 
curves around it in a form resembling that of a horse-shoe; while about one side of the remain- 
ing side is covered by a lagoon or narrow bay which makes off from the river. To complete 
these natural defences, a parapet of timber and a deep fosse ip front of it was extended across 
the neck of land from the head of the lagoon south to the river bank opposite to it. The remains 
of this work [1848] are still very distinct through its entire length of many rods. A block-house 
was also erected upon the bluff which overlooks this flat from the west. Thus protected, this was 
far the strongest position of any of the carrying-places along the river." 

"^ Here follows a description of Fort Edward which is omitted as it has been given in a more 
appropriate place, viz.: in the sketch of that fort, Chapter V. 

^ Could President Dwight's shade now revisit the place, how different would be his descrip- 
tion ! 



SUNDAY AT CAMBRIDGE IN 1810. 311 

river rolled or fell elsewhere in a violent and majestic torrent. A 
copious mist filled its bed, and descended on us in a shower. 

"We took a late dinner and crossing at 'Roger's Ferry,' a little 
below vSandy Hill, pursued our journey on the western side of the 
Hudson. Here we found the road much better and the scenery much 
plcasanter. 

"On Sunday morning, October 13th, having been informed that 
there would be no public worship in Saratoga, none, I mean, in which 
we wished to participate, and that there was a respectable Scotch 
clergyman at Cambridge, we left at this place, and, crossing ' Du- 
mont's Ferry ' again, rode through the township of Argyle and a small 
part of Greenwich to the place of our destination, where we arrived 
just after the congregation had begun their morning worship. On 
our way, a decent Scotchman came up to us on horseback and very 
civilly enquired why we travelled on the Sabbath ; observing to us at 
the same time, that such travelling was forbidden by the law of the 
state, and that the people of that vicinity had determined to carry the 
law into execution.' We easily satisfied him, and were not a little 
pleased to find that there were people in this vicinity who regarded 
the law of the land and the law of God with so much respect. When 
we entered the church our companion obligingly conducted lis to a 
good seat. We found in the desk a respectable clergyman from Scot- 
land, who gave us two edifying sermons, delivered, however, in the 
peculiar manner of the Seceders.'-' 

"The country from ' Dumont's Ferry' through the township of 
Argyle is, for six or eight miles, a plain of pitch-pines. The soil is 
alternately clay and sand, everywhere replenished with slate of a very 
fragile and dissolute ' texture. The surface then rises gradually into 

easy swells and then into hills. The soil of these is loam mixed with 
gravel, generally of a moderately good quality. The forests contain 
oak, chestnut and hickory and abound in maple and birch. The rocks 
are principally granite. 

' Tevipora ! O Mores ! What will the good people of Washington say to this ! 

2 It would be of interest if Dr. Dwight had given us the name of this excellent divine; for, 
perhaps, some of his descendants are )-et living in Washington County. 

' It is interesting to observe how the meaning of words change even in the course of fifty 
years. The word " dis.solute " is now applied to one of a dissipated character. To a reader of 
meditation, this note is in point. 



312 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

" On this road there is a small village in the township of Argyle, 
and another in that of Greenwich. The latter is built around a col- 
lection of mills on the Battenkill. This large mill stream rises in the 
township of Dorset in Vermont, and running south-westward through 
Manchester, turns to the west in the north part of Sunderland. 
Thence, passing through Arlington, it crosses the County of Wash- 
ington between Cambridge and Salem, Easton and Greenwich, and 
discharges its waters into the Hudson at the southwest corner of 
Greenwich. Its course is about forty miles. Here it is called the 
Battenkill. In this village there is a decent Baptist church and about 
thirty houses of an indifferent appearance. 

"The township of Argyle contained in 1790, when it included 
Greenwich and Easton, 2,341 inhabitants; in 1800, after Easton was 
separated from it, 4,695. In 18 10, after Greenwich was separated 
from it, 3,813. In 1800 Easton contained 3,069 and in 1810, 3,253. 
In 18 10 Greenwich contained 2,752. The original township contained 
in 1800, 7,764 and in 1810, 9,818. In 1790, the county of Washington 
contained nine townships and 14,042 inhabitants; in 1800, sixteen 
townships and 35,574 inhabitants; in 1810 twenty-one townships and 
44,289 inhabitants. 

" These facts will give you a tolerably just view of the progress of 
settlement and population in these parts of this state, which, until 
very lately, were a mere wilderness. 

"The township of Cambridge is both fertile and pleasant. On its 
western side runs the range of Taghkannuc, in a succession of hills, 
some of them approaching towards a mountainous height. All the 
varieties of ' hill, dale and sunny plain ' and beautiful interval are 
here presented to the eye of a traveller. A considerable part of its 
extent is in various directions almost a continuous village. The in- 
habitants, some of whom planted themselves here before the Revolu- 
tionary War, are chiefly emigrants from New England and Scotland.' 
Those who came from Scotland particularly engaged my attention. 
They left their native country in the humblest circumstances and 
after encountering all the hardship and expense incident to a long 
and tedious voyage, had, at their arrival, no other objects of their 
reliance beside the goodness of the soil and climate, their own hands 
and the common blessings of Heaven. Notwithstanding the difficul- 

' Some few, also, came from New Jersey. See one of the earlier chapters. 



COMFORTABLE WASHINGTON COUNTY HOMES. 313 

ties, which I have described as attending the formation of a settle- 
ment in an American forest, they have already advanced to the full 
possession of comforts, and in some instances of conveniences. Their 
houses are warm and tidy, and their farms in a promising condition. 
In the church they were decently dressed, and apparently devout ; out 
of it they were cheerful, obliging and kind. To bring themselves 
into this condition, they have undoubtedly suffered many troubles; 
yet, they have certainly acted with wisdom in transporting them- 
selves into a country where all the necessaries . and comforts of life 
are so abundant, and so easily obtained. The prospects of the poor 
brighten at once, their views expand, their energy awakes and their 
efforts are invigorated, when they see competence rewarding of 
course every man possessing health, common sense and integritv, 
laboring with diligence and preserving with care the fruits of his in- 
dustry. At the same time a mighty difference between the possession 
of a fee simple estate, and a dependant tenantry, even where the 
terms are mild, is perfectly understood and deeply felt by every man 
who has been a tenant. Of all the feelings derived from civilized 
society, that of personal independence is undoubtedly the most de- 
lightful. 

"We saw three churches in Cambridge, two of them belonging to 
the Scotch settlers, and all of them decent buildings. In 1790 this 
township contained 4,996 inhabitants; in 1800, 6,187, ^nd in 1810 [the 
year of Dr. Dwight's last visit] 6,730. 

" From Cambridge to Hoosac Falls the county is rather pleasant, 
particularly the first six or eight miles. The rest of the way it was 
too dark to allow us an opportunity of examining it. I have since 
passed through it three times and found it not a little improved." 

A year or two later President Dwight again took a tour through 
Washington County, in describing which he writes as follows: 

" Monday, October 23d, accompanied by Mr. L we rode to 

Stillwater, and, after being obliged to wait three hours for our din- 
ner, proceeded to Argyle, on the eastern side of Miller's Falls [i. e. 

Fort Miller]. Mr. L left us the next morning and we proceeded 

to Lake George, passing through the villages of Fort Edward, Sandy 
Hill and Glens Falls. Here we dined, and while our dinner was pre- 
paring, went down to examine this noble cataract. To my great mor- 
tification I found it encumbered and defaced by the erection of sev- 

[39 J 



314 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

era! paltry biiilding-s raised up since my last visit to this place. The 
rocks both above and below the bridge were extremely altered and 
g-reatly for the worse by the operations of the water and the weather. 
The courses of the currents had undergone, in many places, since my 
last visit, a similar variation. The view, at the same time, was broken 
b}^ the buildings — two or three of which, designed to be mills, were 
given up as useless, and were in ruins. Another was a wretched 
looking cottage, standing upon the island between the bridges. Noth- 
ing could be more dissonant from the splendor Of this scene, and 
hardly anything more disgusting. I found a considerable part of the 
Tocks below the road so much wasted that I could scarcely acknow- 
ledge them to be the same. * * * Qn the road from Waterford to 
Fort Edward a great number of valuable houses are erected. The 
enclosures, since my last visit are greatly improved and multiplied, 
and the county is more generally and better cultivated. This is par- 
ticularly true of Argyle and Northumberland, yet, throughout the 
whole distance the county is greatly advanced toward a state of 
thorough cultivation. At Fort Edward, Sandy Hill and Glens Falls 
there are three handsome villages, greatly improved in every respect 
since ni}^ last journey through this region. In each of the last two 
there is a neat Presbyterian church lately erected. A minister has 
been settled over both villages at a salary of $700 per annum; a fact 
which proves at once the prosperity and good disposition of the in- 
habitants. 

. ''A strong bridge is built over the Mohawk, a mile and a half below 
Cohoes, and another across the Hudson from Northumberland to 
Arg3de, at the foot of Miller's Falls. The road from Glens Falls to 
Fort Miller has become worse than it was formerly, having been worn 
down through the soil." 

Nor were the Baron de Chastellux, the Swedish naturalist, Kalm 
and President Dwight the only distinguished travellers who, about 
this period, made tours through Washington County, desirous of see- 
ing for themselves the classic ground {par excellence) of the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

In -the early spring of 1776, Charles Carroll of Carrolton, (one of 
the signers of the Declaration of Independence) together with Ben- 
jamin Franklin and Saiiiuel Chase, were appointed by the Continental 
Congress Commissioners to visit Canada with a view of inducing the 



NARRATIVE OF CHARLES CARROLL. 315 

French inhabitants of that Province to unite with the American Col- 
onists in throwing otf their allegiance to Great Britain and in making 
a joint effort for independence. 

Accordingly, on the 2nd of April of that year, Franklin, Chase and 
Carroll embarked at New York in a sloop for Albany, on their way to 
Canada, having received on the 20th of March preceding ample in- 
structions from Congress "to promote or to form a union between 
the Colonies and the people of Canada." The party landed at Albany 
on the 7th.' On the 9th, accompanied by General Schuyler and mem- 
bers of his family, the party proceeded northward by the old military 
route, which was cut through by General Sir William Johnson at the 
commencement of hostilities during the French war of 1755-63. On 
the way the gentlemen of the party visited on horseback the fall of 
"the Cohooes," of which the description is most vivid and graphic. 
Mr. Carroll also describes the large lumber industry, and other quite 
extensive manufacturing interests belonging to and conducted b}^ 
General Schuyler at Schuylerville, near the mouth of Fish Creek. 
This place is called in the journal "vSaratoga;" the springs of that 
name being but very little known at the time. The name Saratoga is 
claimed to be derived from an Indian word signifying " the valley of 
the great side hill."* General Schuyler's mansion was reached the 
same evening and the party remained the guests of the general and 
his hospitable family for a week or more. 

On the i6th [April, 1776,] Mr. Carroll writes in his journal: "At a 
mile from Fort Miller we got into a boat and went up the Hudson 
river to Fort Edward. Although this fort is but seven miles distant 
from the place where we took boat, we were about four hours rowing 
up. The current is exceedingly rapid, and the rapidity was increased 
by a freshet. In many places the current was so strong that the bat- 
teau-men were obliged to sit up with poles and drag the boat by the 
painter. Although these fellows were active and expert at this biisi- 
ness, it was with the greatest difficulty they could stem the current in 
particular places. The congress keeps in pay three companies of bat- 
teau-men on Hudson's river, consisting each of thirty-three men with a 
captain; the pay of the men is ^4 los. per month. The lands bordcr- 

' Imagine the difference at the present day. Then by sloop the time from New York to Al- 
bany was almost a week — now less than three hours ! 

* See one of the earlier chapters of this work for an exhaustive discussion of the meaning of 
the name Saratoga. 



316 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ing on Hudson's river, as you approach Fort Edward, become more 
sandy, and the principal wood that grows on them is pine. There are 
several saw mills both above and below Fort Miller. The planks 
sawed at the mills above Fort Miller are made up into small rafts, 
and left without guides to the current of the river ; each one is marked 
so that the raft-men that remain just below Fort Miller falls watching 
for their coming down, may easily know their own rafts. When they 
come over the falls they go out in canoes and boats and tow their rafts 
ashore, and then take them to pieces and make them again into larger 
rafts. The smaller rafts are called cribs. The ruins only of Fort Edward 
remain ; there is a good, large inn where we found quartered Colonel 
Sinclair's regiment. Mr. Allen, son of old Mr. Allen, is lieutenant- 
colonel; he received us very politely and accommodated us with beds. 
The oflficers of this regiment are in general fine-sized men, and 
seemed to be on a friendly footing ; the soldiers also are stout fellows. 

[17th April, 1776.] "Having breakfasted with Colonel Allen, we 
set off from Fort Edward on our way to Fort George. We had not 
got a mile from the fort when a messenger from General Schuyler 
met us. He was sent with a letter by the general to inform us that 
Lake George was not open, and to desire us to reinain at an inn kept 
by one Wing,* at seven miles distance from Fort Edward, and as many 
from Fort George. The country between Wing's tavern and Fort 
Edward is very sandy and somewhat hilly. The principal wood is 
pine. 

"At Fort Edward the river Hudson makes a sudden turn to the 
westward; it soon again resumes its former north course, for, at a 
small distance, we found it on our left, and parallel with the road 
which we travelled, and which from Fort Edward to Lake George 
lies nearly north and south. At three miles or thereabouts from Fort 
Edward there is a remarkable fall in the river. We could see it from 
the road, but not so as to form any judgment of its height. We were, 
however, informed that it was upwards of thirty feet, and is called 
the Kingsbury Falls." We could distinctly see the spray arising like 
a vapor or fog from the violence of the fall. The banks of the river, 
above and below these falls for a mile or two, are remarkably steep 

' Now (ilens Falls. 

^ At present known as "Baker's Falls"— so named, as Dr. Holden writes, from Caleb Baker, 
the original proprietor and builder of the first mills at that place. 



GRAYDEN'S DESCRIPTION. 317 

and high, and appear to be formed or faced with a kind of stone very 
much resembling slate. The banks of the Mohawk river at the 
Cohooes are faced with the same kind of stone. It is said to be an 
indication of sea-coal." ' 

On the return of Franklin and Carroll from Canada, they were met 
at Fort Edward by Captain Alexander Grayden of the Continental 
Army, and a lawyer of some eminence after the war.' He was on his 
way, under a strong escort, in charge of a large sum of money in coin 
to General Schuyler at Lake George — this money being designed to 
promote the purposes sought to be accomplished by the Commission- 
ers, Franklin and Carroll. Grayden's description of the country in 
this vicinity is as follows: 

" Immediately beyond Fort Edward the country assuined a dreary, 
cheerless aspect. Between this and Lake George, a distance of about 
twelve miles, it was almost an entire wood, acquiring a deeper gloom, 
as well from the general prevalence of pines, -as from its dark ex- 
tended covert being presented to the imagination as an appropriate 
scene for the ' treasons, strategeins and spoils ' of savage hostility, to 
which purpose it had been devoted in former days of deadly dissen- 
sion. It was in this tract of country that several actions had been 
fought; the Baron Dieskau had been defeated; and that American 
blood had flowed, as well as English and French, in commemoration 
of which the terror we attach to the adventitious circumstances which 
seem to accelerate man's doom, had given to a piece of standing water 
near the road the name Bloody pond. The descending sun had shed a 



' Carroll, also, speaks in his journal of the fertility of the soil of what is now Washington and 
Warren counties. This, however, was not new. Indeed, as early as 1759, while General Amherst 
was reconstructing the fortresses at Ticonderoga and Crown Point, a proclamation was issued 
by Lieutenant-Governor James DeLancey, inviting the attention of settlers to lands "between 
Lake George'and Fort Edward.'' He continues, they "will there find three Several Spots of 
cleared Ground, two of them capable of containing half a dozen families each, and the other not 
less than twelve; on which shall be left standing for their convenience the Wooden Hutts and 
Coverings of the Troops that have been posted there since the Beginning of the Campaign, 
which, from the footing we have now at Crown Point, will be no longer necessary, and will be 
evacuated and left for the use of tho.se who shall become Settlers. The first of the said Spotts is 
situated four miles above Port Kdward, [now Green's mill.] The second at the Half-Way-Brook, 
near the old Champion house, and the other three miles from Lake George, |Brown's Halfway 
house.] The soil is good, and capable of improvement, and all three well watered. The Half- 
Way-Brook being the spott sufficient for a dozen Families." At the time of the original survey 
of the township of Queensbury, in 1762, writes Dr. Holden, some of these cabins were occupied by 
dwellers. 

' His work, Grayden's Memoirs^ dealing with contemporaneous events is exceedingly interest- 
ing. 



318 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

browner horror on the wilderness ; and, as we passed the dismal pool 
we experienced that transient emotion of commiseration which is nat- 
ural to the mind when contemplatino^ past events, involving the fall 
of friends, the fortune of war, and the sad lot of human kind. 
' Deniqiie ob casus bellorum sortem hotninuni.' * * * The day we 
spent at this station was employed in taking a view of the remains of 
Fort William Henry, and in sauntering along the margin of the im- 
mense fountain of pure water which constitutes Lake George." 

But we have not yet exhausted the list of our distinguished travel- 
lers in Washington County. 

Early in the summer of 1796, Isaac Weld, Jr., whose ancestor had 
penetrated these wilds in the early part of the century, accompanying 
General Nicholson in his famous expedition of 1709, in the capacity of 
a naturalist, came to this country as the representative of what would 
now be called a " Syndicate," to ascertain "whether in case of future 
emergency any part of the United States might be looked forward to 
as an eligible place of abode." He was, like Kalm, a shrewd and accu- 
rate observer, and possessed, withal, of a fund of humor. A few ex- 
tracts therefore from his travels through Washington County into 
Canada, may prove of interest to the reader. Leaving out the account 
of his journey from New York, Albany, Stillwater and Saratoga 
(which though of great interest, is not germane to this history) we 
begin these extracts from the time of his leaving Saratoga. 

" Of the works thrown up at Saratoga by the British and American 
armies during the war, there are now scarcely any remains. The 
country round about is well cultivated, and the trenches have been 
mostly levelled by the plow. We here crossed the Hudson river and 
proceeded along its eastern shore as far as Fort Edward, where it is 
lost to the view, for the road still runs on towards the north while the 
river takes a sudden turn to the west. 

Fort Edward was disinantled prior to the late American war, but 
the opposite armies, during that unhappy contest, were both in the 
neighborhood. Many of the people whom we found living here, had 
served as soldiers in the army, and told us a number of interesting 
particulars relative to several events which happened in this quarter. 
The landlord of the tavern where we stopped, for one, related all the 
circumstances attending Miss McCrea's death, and pointed out a hill, 
not far from the house where she was murdered by the Indians and 
also the place of her interment. 



WELD'S DESCRIPTION. 319 

Fort Edward stands near the river. The town of the same name is 
at the distance of one or two hundred yards from it and contains 
about twenty houses. Thus far wc had got on tolerably well, but 
from hence to Fort Anne, which was also dismantled prior to the late 
war, the road is most wretched, particularly over a long cause-way 
between the two forts, formed originally for the transporting of can- 
non, the soil here being extremel3^ moist and heavy. The cause- way 
consists of large trees laid side by side transversly, some of w^hich 
having decayed, great intervals were left, \vherein the wheels of the 
carriage were sometimes locked so fast that the horses alone could not 
possibly extricate them.' To have remained in the carriage over this 
part of the road would really have been a severe punishment, for 
although boasted of as being the very best in Alban}^ it had no sort 
of springs, and was in fact little better than a common wagon. We, 
therefore, alighted, took our guns and amused ourselves with shooting 
[partridges?] as w^e walked along through the woods. The woods 
here had a much more majestic appearance than any that we had 
before met with on our way, from Philadelphia; this, however, was 
owing more to the great height than to the thickness of the trees, for 
I could not see one that appeared more than thirty inches in diameter. 
Indeed, in general, the girt of the trees in the woods of America is 
but very small in proportion to their height, and trifling in compari- 
son of that of the forest trees in Great Britain. The woods here were 
composed chiefly of oaks," hickory, hemlock and beech trees, inter- 
mixed with which appeared great numbers of the smooth bark or 
Weymouth pines, as they are called, that seem almost peculiar to this 
part of the country. A profusion of wild raspberries w^ere growing in 
the woods here, real!}' of a very good flavor; the}'- are commonly 
found in the woods to the northward of this. In Canada they abound 
everywhere. 

Beyond Fort Anne, which is situated at a distance of eight miles 
from Fort Edw^ard, the roads being better, we once more mounted 
into our vehicle, but the miserable horses, quite jaded, now made a 
dead stop; in vain the driver bawled and stamped and swore; his 
whip had been previously worn out some hours, owing to the frequent 



' This road, as I have before remarked, was probably what in the Adirondacks, is still called 
a " Corduroj^ Road/'' f > • 

* " There are upwards of twenty different kinds of oaks in America." yote byWeld. 



320 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

use he had made of it ; and the animals, no longer feeling- its heavy 
lash, seemed as determined as the mules of the Abbess of Andouilies 
to go no further. In this situation we could not help bantering the 
fellow upon the excellence of his cattle, which he had boasted so 
much of on setting out, and he was ready to cry with vexation at what 
we said, but having accidentally mentioned the sum we had paid for 
the carriage, his passion could no longer be restrained and it broke 
forth in all its fury. 

It appears that he was the owner of two of the horses, and for the 
use of them, and for driving the carriage was to have had one-half of 
the hire, but the man whom he had agreed with, and paid at Albany, 
had given him only ten dollars as his moiety, assuring him, at the 
same time, that it was exactly the half of what we had given, although 
in reality it fell short of the sum by seven dollars and a half. Thus 
cheated by his companion and left in the lurch by his horses, he 
vowed vengeance against him on his return ; but as protestations of 
this nature would not bring us any sooner to our journey's end, and 
as it was necessary that something should be immediately done if we 
did not wish to remain all night in the woods, we suggested an idea 
in the meantime, of his conducting the foremost horses as postilion, 
while one of our servants should drive the pair next to the wheel. 
This plan was not started with any degree of seriousness, for we could 
not have supposed that a tall, meager fellow, upwards of six feet high 
and clad in a pair of thin nankeen breeches, would very readily 
bestride the raw-bone back of a horse, covered with the profuse exu- 
dations which the intense heat of the weather and the labor the ani- 
mal had gone through necessarily excited. As much tired, however, 
with our pleasantries, as we were of his vehicle, and thinking of noth- 
ing, I believe, but how he could best get rid of us, he eagerly em- 
braced the proposal and accordingly, having furnished himself with a 
switch from an adjoining thicket, he mounted his harnessed Rosinante. 
In this style we proceeded, but more than once did our gigantic pos- 
tilion turn round to bemoan the sorry choice he had made ; as often 
did we urge the necessity of getting out of the woods ; he could make 
no answer. So jogging slowly along we at last reached the little town 
of Skenesborough, much to the amusement of every one who beheld 
our equipage, and much to our own satisfaction for, owing to the 
various accidents we had met with, such as traces breaking, bridles 
slipping off the heads of the horses, and the noble horses themselves 



MOSQUITOES OF SKENESBOROUGH. 321 

sometimes slipping- down, etc., etc., we had been no less than five 
hours in travelling the last five miles. 

Skenesborough stands just above the junction of Wood Creek and 
South River, as it is called in the best maps, but which is considered 
as a part of Lake Champlain. At present [1796] there are only about 
twelve hoi:ses in the place; but if the navigation of Wood Creek is 
ever opened, so as to connect Lake Champlain with the North River, 
a scheme which has already been seriously thought of, it will, doubt- 
less, soon become a trading-town of considerable importance, as all 
the various productions of the shores of the lake will then be collected 
there for the New York and Albany markets. Notwithstanding all 
the disadvantages of a land carriage of forty miles to the North River 
a small portion of flour and pot-ash, the staple commodities of the 
state of New York,' is already sent to Skenesborough from different 
parts of the lake, to be forwarded to Albany. A considerable trade, 
also, is carried on through this place and over Lake Champlain, 
between New York and Canada. Furs and horses principally are sent 
from Canada, and in return, they get East Indian goods and various 
manufactures. Lake Champlaim opens a very ready communi- 
cation between New York and the country bordering on the St. 
Lawrence; it is emphatically called by the Indians, Cani.-vd — Evi 
Guariinte — that is, " the mouth or door of the country." 

Skenesborough is most dreadfully infested with mosquitoes; so 
many of them attacked us the first night of our sleeping there that 
when we arose in the morning our faces and hands were covered all 
over with large pustules, precisely like those of a person in the small 
pox. This happened too, notwithstanding that the people of the 
house, before we went to bed, had taken the pains possible to clear 
the room of them by fumigating it with the smoke of green wood, 
and afterwards securing the windows with gauze blinds; and even on 
the second night, although we destroyed many dozens of them on the 
walls, after a similar fumigation had been made, yet we suffered 
nearly as much. These insects were of a much larger size than any 
I saw elsewhere, and their bite was uncommonly venomous. (General 



' And more particularly (especially pot-ash) Washington and Warren counties. Near Lu- 
zerne, in the latter county, there is a mountain called "Pot-Ash-Kettle" from the fact that its 
top greatly resembles an inverted kettle. This similarity, in the minds of the inhabitants of that 
vicinity, to the chief utensil in making their pot-ash doubtless led to the naming of that mountain. 

L40J 



322 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Washington told me that he never was so much annoyed by mosqui- 
toes in any part of America as in Skenesborotigh, for they used to bite 
through the thickest boot I ' 

" There are eight different kinds of mosquitoes in the Louisiana swamps and 
the most ferocious, though not the most poisonous of them is the huge insect com- 
monly called the gallinipper. This drinker of blood is a half inch long and its bill 
is as long as its body. It has an intricate arrangement of files, saws and chisels in 
this bill, all driven, it would appear, by superhuman power. It will sink its pro- 
boscis through a glove of ordinary thickness, if left undisturbed, will bore easily 
through a shirt sleeve and woolen undershirt to the arm beneatli and will bite the 
feet through thin boots and the soclvs under them." 

The situation of the place is indeed peculiarly favorable for them, 
being- just on the margin of a piece of water, almost stagnant and 
shaded with thick woods. The mosquito is of the same species with 
the common gnat of England, and resembles it very closely both in 
size and shape. Like the gnat it lays its eggs on the surface of the 
water, where they are hatched in the course of a few days, unless the 
water is agitated, in which last case they are all destroyed. * * * 
Mosquitoes appear to be particularly fond of the fresh blood of Euro- 
peans, who always suffer much more the first year of their arrival in 
America than they do afterwards. The people of the country seem 
quite to disregard their attacks. Wherever they fix their sting, a lit- 
tle tumor or pustule usually arises, supposed to be occasioned by the 
firmentation when mixed with the blood, of a small quantity of liquor, 
which the insect always injects into the wound it makes with its 
spicula, as may be seen through a microscope, and which it probably 
does to render the blood more fluid. The disagreeable itching this 
excites is most effectually allayed by the application of volatile alkali; 
or if the part newly stung be scratched, and iminediately bathed in 
cold water, that also affords considerable relief; but after the venom 
has been lodged for any time, scratching only increases the itching, 
and it may be attended with great danger. Repeated instances have 
occurred of people having been laid up for months, and narrowly 
escaping the loss of a limb, from imprudently rubbing a part which 
had been bitten for a long time. Great ease is also derived from 



] Nor was this semi-humorous expression on Washington's part, as exaggerated as it might 
at first seem. A reputable correspondent of the New J 'ork Sun, in writing recently about the 
mosquitoes in the Southern Bayous says: 



VERMONT HOMES. 823 

openint^- the pustules on the second day with a lancet, and letting- out 
the blood and watery matter." 

Indeed, "South Bay," seems always to have been noted for this 
pest. Thus, (leneral Rufus Putnam, (a cousin of General Israel Put- 
nam, and in command of Fort Edward in 1759) writing- in his Jo7irnal 
from "South Bay" (Whitehall) under date of July 9th, 1759, says: 
" I'his night we encamped, but the mosquitoes were a very great 
trouble to us, we having no blankets, and I had nothing but a shirt 
and Indian stockings. In fact, no man can tell what an infliction these 
little animals were ! " ' 

And now, although our traveller has left Skenesborough, it may be 
interesting for the reader to have a glimpse of his impressions of a 
farmer's life at this period. It is true, that in what I quote he is 
writing- of' the farmers in Vermont, but the same conditions which he 
observed then, applied equally at that time, to those in Washington 
Count}' — especially, as has been seen, a part of what is now Vermont 
was then a portion of that county. 

He writes: " Shortly after our arrival at Skenesborough, we hired 
a small boat of about ten tons for the purpose of crossing Lake Cham- 
plain, but on account of high winds, we were for three days detained 
at Skenesborough, a delicious feast for the hungry mosquitoes. 

* * * * We at length set off about one o'clock, but from the 
channel being very narrow," it was impossible to make much way 
tacking. We got no further than six miles before sun-set. W"e then 
stopped and having landed, walked up to some farm houses, which 
appeared on the Vermont shore, to procure provisions; for the boat- 
man had told us it was quite unnecessary to take in any at Skenes- 
borough, as there were excellent houses close to the shore the whole 
way, where we could get whatever we washed. At the first we went 
to, which was a comfortable log-house, neither bread, nor meat, nor 
milk, nor eggs were to be had; the house was crowded with children 
of all ages, and the people, I suppose, thought they had but little 
enough for themselves. At a second house, we found a venerable old 
man at the door, reading a newspaper, who civilly offered it to us for 
our perusal, and began to talk about the politics of the day. We 
thanked him for his offer, but gave him to understand, at the same 

* Rii/us Putnam's Dairy, Pp. 36. Joel Munsell Sons, Albany, N. Y., 1886. 
^ And it is so to this dav. 



324 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

time, that a loaf of bread would be much more acceptable. Bread 
there was none ; we g'ot a new Vermont cheese, however. A third 
house now remained in sight, and we made a third attempt at procur- 
ing- something to eat. This one was nearly half a mile off, but, alas! 
it afforded still less than the last, the people having nothing to dispose 
of but a little milk. With the milk and the cheese, therefore, we re- 
turned to our boat, and adding thereto some biscuits and wine, which 
w^e had luckily on board, the whole afforded us a frugal repast. 

The people at the American farm-houses will cheerfully lie three in 
a bed, rather than suffer a stranger to go away who comes to seek for 
a lodging. As all these houses, however, which we had visited, were 
crowded with inhabitants, we felt no great inclination to ask for ac- 
commodation at any of them, but determined to sleep aboard our 
little vessel. But even this was a luxury after our accommodations at 
Skenesborough {out of the way of mosquitoes) and our ears not being 
assailed by the noise even of a single one the whole night. 

The next morning we stopped at one house to breakfast and at an- 
other to dine. At neither of these, although they bore the name of 
taverns, were we able to procure much more than at the houses where 
we had stopped the preceding evening. At the first we got a little 
milk and about two pounds of bread, absolutely the whole of what 
was in the house, and at the second, a few eggs and some cold salted 
fat pork, but not a morsel of bread was to be had. The wretched ap- 
pearance, also, of this last habitation was very striking. It consisted 
of a wooden frame, merely with a few boards nailed against it — the 
crevices between which were the only apertures for the admission of 
light, except the door, and the roof was so leaky, that we were 
sprinkled with the rain even as we sat at the fireside. That people 
can live in such a manner, who have the necessaries and conveniences 
of life within their reach, as much as any others in the world, is really 
most astonishing. It is, however, to be accounted for by that desire 
of making money, which is the predominant feature in the character 
of the Americans in general, and leads the petty farmer in particular 
to suffer numberless inconveniences, when he gains by so doing. If 
he can sell the produce of his land to advantage, he keeps as small a 
part of it as possible for himself, and lives the whole year round upon 
salt provisions, bad bread and the fish he can catch in the rivers or 
lakes in the neighborhood. If he has built a comfortable house for 
himself, he readily quits it, as soon as finished, for money, and goes 



WAR OF 1812-15. 325 

to live in a mere hovel in the woods till he gets time to build another. 
Mone}^ is his idol, and to procure it, he gladly foregoes every self- 
gratification. 

From this miserable habitation we departed as soon as the rain was 
over, and the wind coming round in our favor, we got as far as Ticon- 
deroga that night." * * * 



CHAPTER XXI. 

1812—1878. 



War of 1812-15 — Washington County Affected by it in its General Industries — 
The News of Peace Heralded with Joy — President Wayland's and "Peter 
Parley's" Account of it — The Mexican War and the Part Taken in it by 
Washington County — The Civil War — Sketches of the Different Regiments 
and Companies Enlisted in the County and the Names of Their Officers and 
Those Who Died — The Champlain Canal Completed to Whitehall and Its 
Effect on the General Prosperity of the County — Also a Full Account of 
the Railroad from Saratoga Springs to Whitehall in 1846. 

The War of 18 12- 15, declared between the United States and Great 
Britain found Washington County struggling imder the same depres- 
sion and embarrassments which, at this time, affected the general in- 
dustries, not only of the county but of the country at large. The war, 
however, was a most excellent thing for the financial interests of the 
county, especially as the demands created by the necessities of the 
general government changed this stagnation to an unusual business 
activity. As an example of this, among many others, may be men- 
tioned the culture of flax. That article, now, in the slang of the 
present day of speculators in Wall street, received a most decided 
"boom." Flax, like wool, had for several years been specially a 
yield of Washington County, though produced, hitherto, in very small 
quantities, such, indeed, as could be manufactured by the little flax 
" spinning wheel and loom," ' of each family — every farmer generally 

' A representation of one of these wheels and loom, owned by my mother, is represented in 
one of the bas relieiws of the Saratoga Monument, in the tablet in which is pic.tured the " Women 
of the Revolution" spinning flax for the clothes of the volunteers. 



326 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

sowing a few square rods of that commodity. In May, 1812, however, 
when this rise of prices for wool began, a Mr. James Whiteside of 
Cambridge sowed three acres of flax. Upon this tremendous innova- 
tion regarding the usual crops, " all his neighbors," says Johnson, 
"were astounded and predicted that the labor of raising and dressing 
the crop, would be so great as to more than use up any price which 
might be obtained for it." These forebodings were false, for despite 
all such awful prognostications, the value of the flax constantly con- 
tinued to rise until the dressed flax was sold at the hitherto unprece- 
dented sum of eighteen and three-fourths cents per pound — thus giv- 
ing to the raiser a handsome profit. As a consequence, the raising of 
flax very soon became an important industry in Washington County, 
especiall}^ in its southern part, and even when prices after the war, 
fell, its cultivation was still found profitable — attaining a magnitude 
of no small importance, by becoming a source of income by no means 
to the farmers, of insignificance. 

The woolen manufacture also continued to flourish. Under a state 
Jaw of the period, a premium of forty dollars was paid in 18 13, to 
X«^cott Woodworth of Cambridge, for the best woolen cloth made in 
the county, and another of thirty-five dollars to Adam Cleveland of 
Salem for the second best. The next year the first premium was car- 
ried off by Alexander McNish, and the second by Reuben Wheeler, 
both of Salem. The law vested the power of awarding the prizes in 
the judges of the common pleas in each county, "rather a curious 
tribunal," as Johnson justly says, " as we should now think, toper- 
form such a duty." It should be remembered, however, that at that 
time the judges were nearly all farmers and business men, and per- 
haps, as competent to decide on the value of woolen cloth, as any 
other five men in the county. 

At the same time Washington County was by no means wanting in 
patriotism. Two military rendezvous were established, on the first sub- 
stantiated rumor of the war, in Washington and Warren counties — one 
at Sandy Hill and the other at Glens Falls — for the enlistment of sol- 
diers in the infantry and cavalry service of the United States — at 
which stations, says Dr. A. W. Holden in his admirable Historical 
Centennial address, many enlisted who never returned, they either 
making their homes in the new settlements of the west, or finding a 
last resting-place on the battle-fields of their country. 

In August, 1 8 14, wild and more definite rumors of the war were 



PREVOST'S INVASION. 327 

born on the breeze ' from the northern borders — thus reproducing — 
though, in a very slight degree — the times when a rumor of an attack 
by the savages was carried to the firesides and family altars of their 
grandfathers and grandmothers. 

On the ist of September, 1814, Sir General Prevost entered New 
York state by way of Plattsburgh, with an army of 14,000 picked and 
disciplined troops — the flower, in fact of the British arm3' — accom- 
panied by a fleet of seventeen vessels, and advanced slowly up Lake 
Champlain, and on the nth landed near Cumberland Head. 

Meanwhile, the tidings of the invasion swept, like a tornado, 
through northern New York. Speaking of the manner in which these 
tidings were received, Johnson writes that "the War of 1812 was a 
dreary, dragging, dwindling contest, marked alike by the extreme 
apathy of the people." On the contrary. Dr. A. W. Holden, in his 
Centennial address — from which I have before quoted — sa5^s that 
"the militia promptly responded — Washington and Warren counties 
being almost depopulated of their male citizens." Of these two some- 
what contradictory opinions, I am, however, (with all due deference 
to Johnson, to whose valuable history of Washington County I have 
constantly given credit) inclined to the opinion of Dr. Holden. The 
success of the American troops was due, as Dr-. Holden remarks, in a 
great degree, to the boldness, daring and bravery of the militia, 
who, in the language of their opponents "did not know enough to 
run," and who, from "the rent and bloody fragments of a signal de- 
feat," gathered the laurels of a signal victory. ^ 



' I say, advisedly, "on the breeze" — the hitter expression being here used synonomously with 
"unknown sources" — for it is a very singular fact, never accounted for, that rumors of disaster 
frequently come seemingly by no known or authorized heralds. Thus, after the Battle of Water- 
loo, the disastrous defeat of Napoleon's army was known on the London Stock Exchange several 
hours before it could have been received by any known means of transmission— and this is 
only one instance, of many of a similar character, that could be cited. 

■ The late Chancellor Walworth of Saratoga Springs, who was in this action, has often cor- 
roborated to me this statement. 

The following anecdotes given by Johnson, in this connection, do not seem to bear out the 
above statement of Dr. Holden, I, also, am inclined to think them of mythical value. Still, as 
coming from such a thorough investigator, as the author of "Washington Countj'," I reproduce 
them here in full. 

" There are some queer stories told regarding the movements of those who went from Wash- 
ington County, which tend to show t.iat the so often vaunted superiority of 'the good old times' 
did not extend to military valor. Tradition stoutly asserts that one battalion occupied twelve 
days in marching from its place of organization to Whitehall; but that on hearing then that the 
battle had been fought, it only took one day to march back again. Of an eminent general of the 
period, it is said that he mistook the stern for the prow of his vessel, and went the wrong way on 



328 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

One of the regiments from the eastern part of the county was com- 
manded by Lieutenant-Colonel John McClary of Salem, but Major 
William Root of Hebron, was the officer in command when it was 
called out. It rendezvoused at West Hebron, marched thence to 
Sandy Hill, and thence to Whitehall. Indeed, the last mentioned 
place was the general rendezvous for all this section of the county, as 
it had also been for McDonough's fleet.' The regiment, of whose 
movements, says Johnson, we happen to know from Hon. John 
McDonald, who was a member of it, sailed from Whitehall in two 
sloops just before the Battle of Plattsburgh. He says that he does 
not believe there were six effective muskets in the regiment I The 
arrangement was for them to go to the arsenal at Burlington, Vt., 
and receive arms, and thence to Plattsburgh to receive the enemy. 
"But just before reaching the former place, the thunder of cannon 
was heard. After a brief bvit furious combat, the warlike sounds 
ceased, and then the soldiers on board the sloops were in a tremor of 
anxiety to know which side was victorious. Soon, however, a light 
vessel came flying up the lake, bearing the news that the so called 
"Mistress of the Seas" had been lowered before the Yankee bunt- 
ing. " This set all fears at rest, and messengers were at once des- 
patched through Washington Country, and thence to New York and 
Washington, conveying the glorious news of the defeat of the British. 
This settled the matter, and, with the retreat of Prevost, as before 
stated, all fears were at an end. 

Washington County, in common with many of her sister counties, 
had by the war suffered terribly in the depreciation of its agricultural 
products — notwithstanding the rise in flax to which allusion has been 
made; and now, that peace had once more spread her wings over the 
country, no other county rejoiced more than she. In fact the awful 
gloom over her people had been something fearful. Illustrative of 
this the following graphic description from the pen of the late Presi- 
dent Francis Wayland, then a student in New York City, of the man- 
ner in which the news of peace was received, is typical of the revul- 
sion of feeling not only in New York City, but in the country at 
large. President Wayland writes: 



Lake Champlain, when he heard the cannon at Plattsburgh. It must be said, however, that not 
only were the militia freshly drawn from their fields, entirely unversed in war, but that they 
were often unprovided with arms or ammunition, without which it would be difficult for anyone 
to fight." 



CLOSE OF WAR OF 1812. :]29 

"It so chanced that at the close of the last war with Great Britaiii 
I was temporarily a resident of New York. The prospects of the 
nation were shrouded in gloom. We had been, for two or three years 
at war with the mightiest nation on earth, and as she had now con- 
cluded a peace with the continent of Europe, we were obliged to cope 
with her single handed. Our harbors were blockaded ; our communi- 
cations coastwise between our ports were cut off; our ships were 
rotting in every creek and cove where they could .find a place of 
security: our immense annual products were inouldering in our ware- 
houses; the sources of profitable labor were dried up; our currency 
was reduced to irredeemable paper; the extreme portions of our coun- 
try were becoming hostile to each other,' and the differences of politi- 
cal opinion were embittering the peace of every household; the credit 
of the government was exhausted; no one could discern the means by 
which it could much longer be protracted. 

The following lines, entitled "Hard Times," are quoted from my 
father's paper (The New York Commercial Advertiser) and were pub- 
lished at the close of the War of 181 2 : 

" No business stirring; all things at a stand, 
People complain they have no cash in hand; 
' Dull Times ' re-echoes now from every quarter, 
Even from father to son and daughter. 
Merchants cry out, 'no money to be had,' 
Grocers say the 'times are \&x\ bad;' 
Mechanics work, but they can get no pay. 
Beaux dress genteel, and ladies, too, are gay. 
Cash ver}'^ scarce, dancing twice a week — 
Business dull — amusements still we seek ; 
Some live awhile, and then, perhaps, they fail, 
"While many run in debt and go 'to jail. 
The females must have ribbons, gauze and lace, 
And paint besides, to smooth a wrinkled face ; 
The beaux will dress, go to the ball and play. 
Sit up all night, and lay in bed all day. 
Brush up an empty pate, look smart and prim, 
Follow each trifling fashion or odd whim. 
Five shillings will buy a good fat goose, ^ 
While turkeys, too, are offered fit for use. 
Are these bad times, when persons will profess 
To follow fashions, and delight in dress? 
No ! times are good ; but people are to blame 
Who spend too much, and justly merit shame! " 

' Referring to the dissentions between New England and the Middle and Southern States. 
''■ Would that five .shillings would now buy a " good fat goose ! " 

L41J 



330 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

" It happened that on a Sunday afternoon in February, 1815, a ship 
was discerned in the offing, which was supposed to be a cartel, bring- 
ing home our commissioners at Ghent, from their unsuccessful mis- 
sion. The sun had set gloomil)' before any intelligence had reached 
the city. Expectation became painfully intense, as the hours of dark- 
ness drew on. At length, a boat reached the wharf, announcing the 
fact that a treaty of peace had been signed, and was waiting for noth- 
ing but the action of our government to become a law. The men on 
whose ears these words first fell, rushed in breathless haste into the 
city to repeat them to their friends, shouting, as they ran through the 
streets 'Peace! Peach! PEACE!' Every one who heard the sound 
repeated it. From house to house, from street to street, the news 
spread with electric rapidity. The whole city was in commotion. 
]\Ien bearing lighted torches, were flying to and fro, shouting like 
madmen Pf.ace! PEACE! When the rapture had partially subsided, 
one idea occupied every mind. But few slept that night. In groups 
they were gathered in the streets and by the fireside, beguiling the 
hours of midnight by reminding each other that the agony of war was 
over, and that a worn-out and distracted country was about to enter 
again upon its wonted career of prosperity." 

At the time that the news was received, S. G. Goodrich (" Peter 
Parley ") happened to be in New York. Speaking of the joyful effect 
produced, he says — thus corroborating Dr. Wayland — "I had gone in 
the evening to a concert at the City Hotel. While listening to the 
music, the door of the concert-room was thrown open, and in rushed 
a man breathless with excitement. He mounted a table, and swing- 
ing a white handkerchief aloft, cry out, ' Peace, Peace, Peace! ' " The 
music ceased ; the hall was speedily vacated. I rushed into the street, 
and oh ! what a scene ! In a few minutes thousands and tens of thou- 
sands of people were marching about with candles, lamps, torches — 
makmg the jubilant street appear like a gay and gorgeous procession. 
The whole night Broadway sang its song of peace. We were all Dem- 
ocrats, all Federalists! Old enemies rushed into each other's arms; 
every house was in a revel, every heart seemed melted by a joy 
which banished all evil thought and feeling. On Monday morning I 
set out for Connecticut. All along the road the people saluted us 
with swinging of hats and cries of rejoicing. At one place, in rather 
a lonesome part of the road, a schoolmaster came out, with the whole 
school at his heels, to ask us if the news were true ? We told him it 



PUBLIC JOY AT PEACE. 331 

was, whereupon he tied his bandanna handkerchief to a broom, swung 
it aloft and the whole school hosanned, ' Peace, Peace! ' " 

Nor were the effects of the Peace confined merely to natural bursts 
of delirious delight or to sentimental gushes of feeling. An increased 
material prosperity was at once apparent. Under the changed condi- 
tion of affairs every industry, as if touched by the magic wand of an 
enchanter, awoke to new life and vigor. Instead of " ships rotting in 
every creek and cove," as so graphically described by Dr. Wayland, 
the different ship-yards of the city resounded from morning till night 
with the blow of the hammer, as keel after keel of new vessels was 
daily laid; in place of otu" "immense annual products mouldering in 
our warehouses," ships could not be built or chartered fast enough to 
convey these products to foreign customers, and in lieu of the 
" sources of profitable industry being dried up," the streets were filled 
with artizans plying their several vocations, and with laborers going 
to and from their daily toil. In the counting-houses, moreover, where 
a short time previous those few clerks, who had been so fortunate as 
not to be discharged, yawned languidly over their desks, all was bus- 
tle and animation, as, briskly engaged with foreign correspondence, 
their faces beamed with satisfaction at the immediate prospect of their 
services being well requited. New buildings, public and private, 
sprang up in different sections of the citv with marvelous celerity and 
the wharves, no longer green with mould, and tenanted solely by the 
water-rat, were lined wnth ships waiting only for favoring gales to 
whiten the ocean with their sails, and bear the flag of the United 
States into ports where for so long it had been unseen, if, indeed, it 
had not been almost totally forgotten! In fact, the city, no longer a 
'"deserted village," presented the appearance of an immense hive, 
teeming with human bees, in which no drones were either known or 
allowed. Squalor had given place to splendor, poverty to affluence; 
a full tide of prosperity had set in and shrewd speculators, who knew 
how to take advantage of its flood, were making rapid fortunes. 

Nor was this wonderful re-action confined solely to the city of New 
York. The entire state of New York, and especially Washington 
County shared to the utmost in this revival of industries, both of 
farming and of manufacturers. Indeed, from the close of the War of 
1812 may really be dated the first steps which eventually led to this 
covmty taking such a pre-eminent rank among her sister counties in 
all that appertains to material wealth and prosperity. 



332 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Soon after the close of the war, viz. : on the 17th of April" 181 5, the 
town of White Creek was taken off from the town of Cambridg-e — it 
thus becoming- the southeastern town of the county. Its name is de- 
rived, says Johnson, from the stream of that name, Avhich forms its 
western boundary, but the appellation has been the origin of consid- 
erable trouble among- students of the early history of the county, 
many of whom have confounded it with the old "White Creek," 
which has gone for a hundred years by the name of Salem. The sur- 
face of the south portion of the town is gently rolling, and the cen- 
tral and north portions are occupied by the Taghanick Mountains. 
The summits of these mountains are rocky and broken and covered 
with forests. The principal streams are Hoosick river, Owl Kill, 
Pumpkin Hook (said to be a corruption of the Indian Pom-pa-nuck, 
the name of a tribe of Indians of the Mohican nation, who removed 
hither from Connecticut) Center, White and Little White. The upper 
course of Owl Kill is through a deep and narrow valley abounding 
with miany picturesque views. The Walloomsac Patent, which lies 
partly in this town in the south, was settled by the Dutch. Among 
the other g-rants, also, were the Bain, Embury, Grant and Campbell, 
and the Lake and Van Cuyler Patents. A colony of Irish Methodists 
settled near Ash Grove about 1770, and here was organized the Sec- 
ond Methodist Episcopal Church in America, by Thomas Ashton 
(from whom the locality was named) and Rev. Philip Embury. The 
first settlement at White Creek was made by James and Thomas Mor- 
rison. ' 

At the same date, 17th of April, 1815, Jackson was formed from 
Cambridge, the township lying in a narrow strip between Cambridge 
and White Creek on the south and Salem on the north. It was named 
after the hero of New Orleans, then all the rage, that general having 
just defeated the flower of the British troops, composed of Welling- 
ton's Peninsular troops, under General Edward Packenham, 
the "hereof Salamanca, " and one of Wellington's veteran officers — 
in the same way that, should new towns spring up in the United 
States, (in 1900) many would be found bearing- the name of "Dewey" 
— the hero of Manila. The north branch of the Taghkanick range 
occupies the eastern portion of the town, and several parallel ranges 
extend through the central and western portions, rendering the entire 

' French. 



wSETTLEMENT OF SALEM. 333 

surface very hilly. The summits of the hills are from 300 to 800 feet 
above the valleys and are generally crowned with dense forests. The 
principal streams are the Batten Kill and a branch of Owl Creek. In 
the valley between the hills that border immediately upon the Batten 
Kill and those further west, are several small lakes, known as Long, 
Big, Dead and Little ponds. These lakes are beautiful sheets of 
water, abounding in game fish, and surrounded by hills, forests and 
fine cultivated farms. Portions of this town and of White Creek wei'e 
embraced in the Anaquassacoct Patent of 10,000 acres, granted May 
II, 1762. The first settlers were James Irwin, Peter Magill and John 
Miller, all of whom located in the south part of the town. The first 
church (Reformed Protestant Dutch) in the town was organized De- 
cember 31, 1833, Rev. James W. Stewart being its first pastor. The 
late George Law, one of the projectors and proprietors of the Califor- 
nia line of steamships, was a native of this town. 

As Salem, so often spoken of from its past traditions, is such a 
prominent town in Washington County, this may be an appropriate 
place in which to speak of its history more at length, although several 
allusions to that town have already been made in the course of this 
history. 

Salem, though organized in 1788, was really first settled about the 
year 1756, by two companies of emigrants, one from Scotland and 
Ireland and the other from New England. They worshiped together 
under the ministry of the Rev. Thomas Clark, an Irish preacher, till 
differences arose about "occasional communion," and about receiving 
the covenant of the three kingdoms. This — to us at the present day — 
ridiculous controversy occasioned a separation in 1769. A Presby- 
terian Church was soon after formed, and the Rev. John Warford, its 
first minister, was installed in 1789. He labored in this pastorate 
about fourteen years, when he was succeeded by Rev. Thomas Tomb, 
who continued in the ministry till his death in 1832. His successors 
have been Rev. John Whiton and Rev. A. B. Lambert. The first 
Presbyterian Church was built in 1774, and for three years it was 
used, during the Revolution, for barracks and a store-house.' It was 
burned by the Royalists in 1778. The next church was built imme- 
diately after the Revolution and was accidentally destroyed by fire in 

* This was not the only church and public institution used in the Revolution for barracks. 
During that war both the present " Brattle St" church in Boston, and the still standing colleges 
of Brown University at Providence, R. I,, were also used for this same purpose. 



334 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

1836. The third, erected at a cost of $10,000, was also biirned in 
April, 1840. 

The following inscription is copied from a nionnment in the Salem 
village graveyard : 

"Here lie the earthly remains of Rev. James Proudfit, pastor of 
the Ass. Ref. Congregation in Salem; who, after manifesting the 
most ardent zeal and disinterested faithfulness in the Gospel of his 
Master during a period of nearly fifty years, fell asleep in Jesus, Oct. 
22d, 1802. ' Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into 
the joy of thy Lord.' ' They who turn many to righteousness shall 
shine as the stars forever and ever.' " ' 

Thirty years elapsed after the War of 181 2 — 15, before the citizens 
of Washington County were again called upon to show their patriot- 
ism and once more both that county and Warren were represented by 
their gallant soldiers, on the plains of Matamoras, at the storming of 
Chapaultepec, the fierce fought battle of Monterey and the hotly con- 
tested struggle of Buena Vista. "The boys," says Dr. Holden, 
"came back radiant with success and covered with glory — to die like 
sheep struck with the rot — those heroes who whipped the Mexican 
'Greasers! '^ — that same despised enemy, which, a few years later, 
sent the armies of France back on the sea and shot the brave Maxi- 
milian like a dog! Verily, ' Republics are ungrateful,' and it needs 
something more than the glamor of poesy and the allurements of 
romance to make the battle-scarred veterans believe that it is sweet 
and glorious to die for one's country." * 

Regarding the occurrences of the late Civil War, this history will 
be confined entirely to those companies and regiments which were 
enlisted in Washington County — giving the names of their different 
officers. With the valor of these regiments at the South and upon 
various battlefields too numerous to mention, this history has nothing 
to do. Suffice it to say that the m.en who enlisted from Washington 
County were no whit inferior in endurance and bravery to those of 
their ancestors, who, in many a hard fought field against the flower of 
the French army, came out victorious. Besides which, to give in 



' Barber. The late Rev. Alexander Proudfit, formerly of Salem, and afterward so long a 
revered citizen of Saratoga Springs, N. Y.,. was, I think, the grandson of this Rev. James Proud- 
fit. 

^ Dr. Holden in this probably had in mind the Latin poet's aphorism, Dii/ce et decoruvi est pro 
patria mori. 



WASHINGTON COUNTY IN CIVIL WAR. 335 

detail an account of the many brilliant actions in which they were 
]3articipants would exceed g-rcatly the limits which the publishers of 
this work have prescribed. 

The reader must, therefore, be satisfied with the statement that 
with the first thrill that vibrated through the North, when the news 
that Fort Sumter had been fired upon,' no county in all of the States 
of the United States, was more anxious, not only to enlist, but to be 
sent to the front as early as possible, than that of Washing-ton Coun- 
ty. Many of her heroes are now lying- beneath the soil of the battle- 
fields of Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam and Fredericksburgh, 
or else, in the further south, quietly resting beneath the wild mag- 
nolia's shade. It may, however, be said, in passing, that in the latter 
two engagements, the county of Washington, as well as Warren 
County, was most gallantly and proudly represented; and as a proof 
of this statement, the large mortuary list which subsequently was 
sent back to fill so many homes v/ith sadness, tells the story, that 
their boys, wherever they went did their full duty, and of their mem- 
ories neither of those counties (Washington and Warren) need be 
ashamed. On the contrar}', they can always point to their achieve- 
ments with well earned pride. 

To come then to the several companies which Washington County 
sent to the front in the Civil War. 

TWENTY-SECOND REGIMENT. 

The first regiment from this portion of the state was the Twenty- 
second New York Infantry, four companies of which were raised in 
Washington County. Nearly all of the towns were represented, but 
the centers of organization of these companies were as follows, viz. : 
Company B, Fort Edward; Company D, Cambridge; Company G, 
Whitehall ; Company H, Sandy Hill. The officers of these companies 
were as follows: 

Company B — Robert E. McCoy, captain; Duncan Sendrum, first 
lieutenant; James W. McCoy, second lieutenant. 



' I well remember when the new.s of this momentous event was received. I was then engaged 
in a baseball game in a field near S iratoga Springs, when the tidings came to us from the tele- 
graph-office in that village. Instantly^ although it was at a critical period m the game, every one 
of us threw down his ball and bat, and leaving them on the field, rushed into the town to gain 
confirmation of this event! 

There were no Democrats nor Republicans in that crowd — all were patriots. 



336 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Company D — Henry S. Milliman, captain; Thomas B. Fisk, first 
lieutenant; Robert Rice, second lieutenant. 

Company G — Edmund Boynton, captain, succeeded b}^ Benjamin G. 
Moshcr before muster; Duncan Cameron, first lieutenant.' 

Company H — Thomas J. Strong, captain; William A. Piersons, 
first lieutenant; Matthew S. Teller, second lieutenant. 

After doing valiant service, this regiment returned home and, on 
the, 19th of June, 1863, was mustered out. Sad, however, to relate, 
hardly a quarter of those who had set out so proudly under its ban- 
ners to the sound of martial music in the early summer of 1861, 
returned to their homes. Battle and the disasters incident to malarial 
campaigns had laid many in the grave, while others had, previously 
to the home coming, been discharged on account of physical disabil- 
ity, or else were still held captives in confederate prisons. A nuinber 
of changes had also taken place among the officers. James W. 
McCoy was now captain of Company B. Captain and Brevet-Major 
M. S. Teller was now in command of Company H, with A. Halleck 
Holdbrook and Marshall A. Duers as lieutenants. Duncan Cameron 
was captain of Company G, and Lucius E. Wilson was in command of 
Company D. 

Upon the war-worn and scarred battalion reaching Fort Edward, 
"it was received with a grand ovation by the excited people. A 
similar reception greeted it at Sandy Hill and Glens Falls, and then 
the first companies raised in Washington County for the defense of 
the national life were dismissed to their long unvisited homes." 

FORTY-THIRD REGIMENT. 

This regiment, which was raised in the summer of 1861, and the 
members of which were generally from Albany, Montgomery, New 
York. Otsego and Washington Counties, was mustered into the ser- 
vice of the United States from August 20 to September 24, 1861. The 
only company raised in this county was Company F, which was raised 
at Sandy Hill and vicinity. Its first officers were James C. Rogers, 

' And here regarding Duncan Cameron, I would fain lay a chaplet of immortelles upon his 
memory. Long before the war, I knew him well. He was then an inn-keeper in the town of 
Athol (since Thurman in Warren County) and a more brave, genial man— having all the sterling 
characteristics of his Scotch ancestry— I never met. He did valiant service in the war, and his 
name should be held in affectionate remembrance. Doubtless, of course, there were many others 
in these companies (herewith mentioned) who were as brave as he; only, not having a personal 
acquaintance with them, I cannot speak of them with any personal knowledge. 



SOLDIERS OF THE CIVIL WAR. 337 

captain; George B. Culver, first lieutenant and John W. Wilkinson, 
second lieutenant. 

This also was a fighting regiment. In the seven days fight on the 
Peninsula and in the Battle of Chancellorsville it suffered severely — 
Company F losing its first lieutenant, Hugh B. Knickerbocker, who 
had succeeded George B. Culver.' and several privates, besides having 
a heavy list of wounded. Indeed, Captain (afterwards Major) Rogers 
states that he does not believe that half a dozen of the original mem- 
bers of Company F came back to Washington County. A few, he 
further says, had previously been discharged ; a few, after their terms 
of enlistment had expired, went directly from the army to settle down 
in other localities and the majority, stricken down by battle or disease 
left their bones under the soil of Virginia. 

FORTY-FOURTH INFANTRY. 

This regiment, otherwise known as the " Ellsworth Avengers," and 
intended to be composed of one or two joicked men from every town 
in the state, had among its members some twenty or thirty men from 
Washington County. Among these was Edward Northup of Sandy 
Hill, who subsequently became an officer in the regular army. It 
was mustered out of service on the iith of October, 1864, the veterans 
and recruits being transferred to other regiments. 

EIGHTY-SEVENTH INFANTRY. 

While this regiment was raised mainlv in Brooklyn, yet Companv 
A was composed almost wholly of men from the towns of Dresden 
and Putnam in this county. It covered itself with glory even under 
the severe trials of the Army of the Potomac, loosing, in fact, so 
many in the battles in which that army participated — especially at 

' Lieutenant Geor.ire B. Culver (at present, igoo, cashier of a bank at Granville, Wasbinjs'ton 
County) was taken critically ill at Washington, D. C and this, therefore, was the reason of his 
having to give up his command. A sketch of his war record is in point: 

George Bradley CulveY. First Lieutenant, U. S. V., Company F, Forty-third New York In- 
fantry, Albany and Yates Rifles. Enlisted August. 1861, mustered in September 3, 1861, honora- 
bly discharged July i6, 1862. His record is as follows: Defenses of Washington, D. C, Hancock's 
Brigade, Smith's Division. Army of the Potomac; First Brigade, Smith's Division, Fourth Corps, 
Army of the Potomac; siege of Yorktown and Battle of Williamsburgh, Va.; First Brigade, Sec- 
ond Division, Fourth Corps, Army of the Potomac; Peninsular Campaign, First Brigade, Second 
Division, Sixth Corps, Army of the Potomac. 

L42J 



338 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

those of " Malvern Hill " and the " Wilderness, " that it was finally 
consolidated with the Fortieth New York Volunteers. When, at 
length, it was mustered oiit on the 17th of June, 1865, there were 
very few members of the original Company A remaining it. 

NINETY-THIRD INFANTRY. 

Undismayed by the disasters which had fallen upon the Union 
arms, John S. Crocker, a lawyer of Cambridge, in the fall of i86i, 
began the raising of another regiment, his design being to have it 
recruited mainly from this county. Crocker's efforts were successful 
and the command was mustered then at Albany — the regimental 
rendezvous — in November of that year under the name of 
the "Ninety-third New York Infantry."' John S. Crocker was 
Colonel, B. C. Butler of Luzerne. Warren County, Lieutenant-Col- 
onel; Michael Cassidy of Albany, Major and Haviland Gifford of Eas- 
ton, Adjutant. The following were the companies from W^ashington 
County, with their officers. 

Company G — Cambridge and vicinity; Walter S. Gray, captain; W. 
Y. S. Beekman, first lieutenant ; Frances S. Bailey, second lieutenant. 

Company F — Fort Edward and vicinity; George B. Moshier, cap- 
tain; John Bailey, first lieutenant; Silas S. Hubbard, second lieuten- 
ant. 

Company I — Granville, Argyle, etc.; Nathan J. Johnson, captain; 
William Randies, first lieutenant; James M. Crawford, second lieu- 
tenant. 

This regiment remained at Albany until the ist of April, 1862, 
when they went to Washington and thence (under General McClellan) 
to Fortress Monroe and Yorktown. While engaged in the siege of 
the latter place, Colonel Crocker and Major Cassidy were captured by 
the enemy. In February, 1865, Lieutenant-Colonel Butler was mus- 
tered out, when Adjutant Haviland of Easton, was commissioned and 
mustered as Lieutenant-Colonel, remaining in command of the regi- 
ment until the end of its service. J. H. Northup, captain of Com- 
pany I was, about the same time, mustered as major and commis- 
sioned as lieutenant-colonel, so that, during the closing portion of this 
regiment's service, both of the field officers were from Washington 
County, although that county furnished but three out of the original 
ten companies. The regiment was mustered out on the 29th of June, 



SOLDIERS OF THE CIVIL WAR. 339 

1865, but few of the Washington County boys who had enlisted in 
this reg-iment were among the number then dismissed to their homes 
— in fact, only one of the original nine line officers from that county 
was mustered out with the regiment. 

NINETY-SIXTH INFANTRY. 

This regiment, which was raised in the autumn of 1861, was drawn 
chiefly from Warren, Essex and Clinton counties. Company E 
alone was from Washington County, and was chiefly recruited from 
the vicinity of Sandy Hill and Fort Edward. Its first officers were 
Hiram Eldridge, captain; A. J. Russell, first lieutenant and James S. 
Cray, second lieutenant. This regiment was one of the few regi- 
ments which remained in service until 1866. It was mustered out in 
the spring of 1866. 

U'EPINEUIL'S ZOUAVES (FIFTY-THIRD INFANTRY.) 

Desirous of emulating his French ancestors in the Revolutionary 
War, Count Lionel J. D'Epineuil, in the summer of 1861, came from 
France to the United States with the intention of raising a brigade of 
Zouaves — if possible all Frenchmen — to serve in the Union army. He 
had a new and very peculiar drill which he wished to put in practice, 
and was very zealous in his efl^orts to obtain men. He obtained the 
services of a M. Antoine Renois of Whitehall, who had already re- 
cruited a large number of men, to raise a regiment of Zouaves (to 
carry out his pet idea) from northern New York and Lower Canada. 
Accordingly, M. Renois established recruiting stations at various 
points along Lake Champlain and obtained quite a number — some 
fifty being from Whitehall. These w^ere not enovigh for a regiment, 
however, and by an order from the War Department, what few inen 
had been ol>tained, was mustered out in the spring of 1862. 

THE SECOND CAVALRY. 

A cavalry company was organized at Salem, by Solomon W. Rus- 
sell, Jr., of that village in September, 1861. The members were 
chiefl}- from the town of Salem, but Argyle. Cambridge, Easton, 
Greenwich, Hartford, Hebron, Jackson, Kingsbury, Fort Anne, Fort 
Edward and White Creek were also represented. The company was 



340 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

mustered in at Salem by Colonel John S. Crocker of Cambridge, 
special inspector, September 7th, 1861. Its commissioned officers 
were Soloman W. Russell, Jr., of Salem, captain; David E. Cronin, 
first lieutenant, and William Robertson of Salem, second lieutenant. 
In the spring of 1862, the War Department, concluding that there 
was too much cavalry in the field, this regiment was mustered out 
of service on the 31st day of March of that year. Captain Russell, 
again volunteered, being detached on the staff of his distinguished 
relative, Major-General Russell, also of Washington County, and 
being commissioned by the President as Brevet-Major for gallant and 
meritorious services, served throughout the war. 

THE HARRIS LIGHT CAVALRY. 

On the 7th of August, 1861, Clarence Buell came up from Troy to 
Fort Edward, being greatly desirous of raising a company of horse- 
men for the " Harris Light Guards," then being formed and named 
after the newly elected United States senator. Hon. Ira Harris. He 
spoke so enthusiastically that many of the young men of Fort Edward 
at once enrolled themselves under his banner and soon the ranks of 
his company were full. Most of the men came from Fort Edward, 
but there were a few from Kingsbury, Fort Anne, Whitehall and 
Argyle. The company from Washington County was designated as 
Company E, with the following officers: Clarence Buell, captain; 
John Liddle, first lieutenant and Andrew Londen, second lieutenant. 
The regiment did good service under Sherman, when the latter was 
engaged with Early's army, but was shortly after mustered out at 
New York City. Before, however, the mustering out, George E. 
Milliman, of Fort Edward, was promoted to second lieutenant. 

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-THIRD INFANTRY. 

President Lincoln's call in 1862 for " three hundred thousand men" 
immediately upon the complete collapse of McClellan's campaign 
before Richmond, aroused the entire north to put forth the most her- 
culean efforts in behalf of the preservation of the Union. But, 
perhaps nowhere did his trumpet blast arouse more enthusiasm than 
among the people of Washington County. Accordingly, on the 2 2d 
of July, an immense war-meeting was held at Argyle, which was 
followed by others in different parts of the county. As a result of 



vSOLDIERS OF THE CIVIL WAR. 341 

these meetings, " war committees " were appointed — one for the coun- 
ty at large and one for each town. These committees began work at 
once, and it was decided that Washington County should raise an 
entire regiment of her own. Recruiting began at once and a camp 
was established at Salem, called "Camp Washington." Indeed, so 
indefatigable were these committees, that, before the middle of 
August, the companies began to assemble, and by the 2 2d of that 
month, the regiment had received its full complement. The compan- 
ies (that there might be no delay) were mustered in as soon as fvill, 
and were made up from the different towns as follows : 

Company A, Greenwich; Company B, Kingsbury; Company C, 
Whitehall; Company D, Fort Anne, Dresden and Putnam; Company 
E, Hartford and Hebron; Company F, Argyle; Company G, White 
Creek and Jackson; Company H, Salem; Company I, Cambridge and 
Easton; Company K, Granville and Hampton. 

The following is the roster of the original officers of the regiment, 
which is here given in full — not because it is essential to this history, 
but because many of these officers may yet be living, and they, there- 
fore, may be glad to see that their names are preserved. 

Field and Staff — Colonel, A. L. McDougal; lieutenant-colonel, 
Franklin Norton; major, James C. Rogers; adjutant, George H. Wal- 
lace ; surgeon, John Moneypenny ; assistant surgeon, Lysander W. 
Kennedy and Rich. S. Connelly; quartermaster, John King; chaplain, 
Henry Gordon. 

NoN-CoMMissiONED SxAFF — Sergeant major, Walter F. Martin; 
quartermaster-general, Charles D. Warner; commissary-sergeant, 
Clark Rice ; hospital steward, Seward Coming. 

Company A — Captain, Abram Reynolds; first lieutenant, A. T. 
Mason; second lieutenant, James C. Shaw. 

Company B — Captain, George W. Warren; first lieutenant, J. C. 
Warren ; second lieutenant, Samuel Burton. 

Company C — Captain, Adolphus H. Farmer; first lieutenant, Walter 
G. Warner ; second lieutenant, John C. Corbett. 

Company D — Captain, John Barron; first lieutenant, Alexander An- 
derson; second lieutenant, E. P. Quinn. 

Company E — Captain, Norman F. Weer; first lieutenant, George 
R. Hall ; second lieutenant, Seth C. Carey. 

Co.mpany F — Captain, Duncan Robertson; first lieutenant, Donald 
Reid; second lieutenant, George Robinson. 



342 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Company G — Captain. Henry Gray; first lieutenant, James Hill; 
second lieutenant, Charles Archer. 

Company H — Captain. John S. Crary; first lieutenant, Benjamin 
Elliott; second lieutenant, Josiah W. Culver. 

Company I — Captain, Orrin S. Hall; first lieutenant, Marcus Beagle ; 
second lieutenant, Albert Shiland. 

Company K — -Captain, Henry O. Wiley; first lieutenant, Hiram O. 
Warren ; second lieutenant, George W. Baker. 

On the 4th of September, 1862, the regiment was mustered into the 
United States service as the 123d New York Volunteer Infantry, and 
the day after saw it on its way to the front. Reaching Washington 
on the 9th the men receiving in that city their arms and equipments 
— the regiment was at once attached to Paul's Brigade of Casey's 
Division. It participated in several hotly fought engagements, and 
was with Sherman in his memorable " March to the Sea." On its 
return to Washington, Sherman's army was reviewed on the 24th of 
May, by President Johnson and General Grant — at which time Gen- 
eral Sherman thus spoke of its appearance : 

"It was, in my judgment, the most magnificent army in existence 
— sixt5''-five thousand men in splendid physique, who had just com- 
pleted a march of nearly two thousand miles in a hostile country. * * 
The steadiness and firmness of the tread, the careful dress of the 
guides, the uniform intervals between the companies, the tattered 
and bullet-riven flags, all attracted universal notice. For six hours 
and a half that strong tread of the Army of the West resounded along 
Pennsylvania avenue, and when the rest of the column had passed by, 
thousands of the spectators still lingered to express their sense of con- 
fidence in the strength of a government which could claim such an 
army." 

After this review the 123d was encamped near Bladensburg until 
the 8th of June, when it was mustered out of the service of the 
United States. The next day it started for Albany, at which city 
it was paid off. 

"Thus closed the'career of the Washington County Regiment, 
which could inscribe upon its flag the names of more than a score of 
battles and almost innumerable skirmishes, that marched more than 
three thousand miles, and which bore an honorable part in five of the 
great campaigns of the war, viz. : the campaign of Chancellorville, 



vSOLDIERS OF THE CIVIL AVAR. 343 

the campaign of Gettysburg, the campaign of Atlanta, the ' March to 
the Sea,' and the campaign of the Carolinas." 

The joyous anthems with which the return of the 123d was received 
on their return home, was, however, marred by a discordant note in 
the fact that, among many others, two were not there to receive these 
plaudits. These were Second Lieutenant John C. Corbett of Com- 
pany C, who was killed at Fredericksburg and Captain Norman F. 
Weer of Company E, who was also killed at the engagement of McAl- 
lister's Mill. 

THE ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIFTH REGIMENT. 

Although this regiment was raised in the summer of 1863 in 
Rensselaer county, yet a part of one of its companies was from Eas- 
ton. It took part in the battles of Mine Run, the Wilderness, and 
Cold Harbor, and it was also engaged in many of the minor skirmishes 
that finally culminated in the fall of Richmond. In the course of ser- 
vice Lewis H. Crandall of Easton, became successively, second lieu- 
tenant, first lieutenant and captain. It was mustered out Jime 5, 
1865. 

THE ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY-NINTH REGIMENT. 

Warren B. Coleman, captain ; John H. Hughes, first lieutenant and 
Robert O'Connor, second lieutenant, were the officers of the single 
company, raised in Sandy Hill and vicinity, which represented Wash- 
ington County in the 169th New York Infantry. It took part in the 
hattles of Drury Bluff, Cold Harbor, Dutch Gap and other conflicts 
around Petersburgh and Richmond. Lieutenant Hughes died Sep- 
tember 6th, 1863, of wounds received in action while gallantly lead- 
ing on his men to the attack of one of the enemy's breastworks. Cap- 
tain Coleman resigned in February, 1863, and was succeeded by Cap- 
tain and Brevet-Major Frank W. Tarbell, he, in turn being followed 
on his retirement, October, 1864, by Captain Emory W. Church. The 
regiment was mustered out on the 19th of July, ^865. 

THE FIRST MOUNTED RIFLES. 

In the month of July, a mounted battalion, known as " Wool's Body 
Guard," was raised in Rensselaer county, but there were thirty or 



SU WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

forty men from Salem, Cambridge and vicinity enlisted in it, Cor- 
nelius S. Hasten of Cambridge being one of its captains. This regi- 
inent remained on duty in Virginia until November, 1865, when it 
was also mustered out of service. 

THE SECOND VETERAN CAVALRY. 

In the summer and autumn of 1863, two regiments were organized 
from many of those soldiers who had been lately discharged from the 
two years' regiments and yet were desirous of enlisting into a cavalry 
command. One, under the name of the ''Second Veteran Cavalry," 
was at once formed and contained one full company (D) from White- 
hall, commanded by Captain Thomas F. Allen. Parts of thi'ee other 
companies (A E and M) were also from Washington Count3\ Duncan 
Cameron, ex-captain of Company G of the Twent3^-second Infantry 
(of whom I have already spoken in affectionate remembrance) was 
Major of the regiment and Lucius E. Wilson, previously captain of 
Company D, of the Twenty-second Infantry (afterwards Brevet-Major) 
was captain of one of the companies of the Second Veteran Cavalry. 

The regiment proceeded to Washington and thence to Louisiana, 
whei^e it joined the Red River Expedition of General Banks, and in 
fact, it was on dut^* in Louisanna during a large part of 1864.' It Avas 
mustered out in November, 1865. 

THE SIXTEENTH HEAVY ARTILLERY. 

In December, 1863, Thomas J. Strong of Sandy Hill, who had al- 
ready served in the Twenty-second Infantry, went to Albany with a 
A-iew of obtaining authority to raise a new regiment. The time was 
inauspicious, as the war being then thought to be nearly at an end, 
no new regiments were being authorized. Colonel Strong, however, 
was favorably recommened to Colonel Morrison of New York City, 
w^ho had for some time been endeavoring to raise a force to be known 
as the New York Heavy Artillery. An understanding was soon ar- 
rived at between the"Se two officers and Colonel Strong returned to 
Sandy Hill with authority to raise a battalion of four companies for 



■ For a full account of the Red River Campaign, in which this regiment and the i.s6th New 
York Volunteers participated, the reader is referred to my "History of the is6th New York 
Volunteers." 



vSOLDIERS OF THE CIVIL WAR. 345 

the Sixteenth, of which he was to be major. Armed with this author- 
ity, he straightway proceeded to issue handbills inviting recruits, and 
on the 2 2d of December of that year (1863) he opened an office at 
vSandy Hill for the reception of names. Bounties were then high and 
many who had been discharged from other regiments — their terms of 
enlistment having expired — came flocking into the rendezvous by the 
hundred. Most of the men were taken to Elmira and there formed 
into companies without much reference to the localities from which 
they came. Company I, however, was organized at Sandy Hill, with 
the following officers: captain, Henry C. Sherrill; first lieutenants, 
Norman S. Kenyon and Rufus Gardner; second lieutenants, Charles 
C. Smith and Lew Washburn. There was also a detachment of some 
thirty men from Salem and Catnbridge, which went into Company K. 
Thomas B. Fisk of Shushan and James S. Smart of Cambridge were 
first lieutenants. Recruiting also increased so greatly that by the 
latter part of January, 1864, the regiment had more companies than 
were required. Of this regiment Colonel Strong accepted the rank of 
major. In the battle of Dutch Gap Canal Major vStrong lost a leg and 
on the 1 6th of September of that year he was promoted for bravery, 
to the rank of Lientenant-Colonel of the regiment and afterwards to 
that of Brigadier-General. The regiment took part in the capture of 
Fort Fisher in January, 1865, and it was finally mustered out on the 
2 1 St da}^ of August, 1865.' 

There remains only to speak of the two great causes (or perhaps, 
sources) which have contributed more than any other to the develop- 
ment and present prosperity of Washington County. These were the 
opening of the Champlain Canal and the railroad from vSaratoga 
Springs to Whitehall. We will first speak of the canal. 



' For this account of the different companies from Washington County I am indebted solely 
to Johnson's History of Washington County^ and for which I desire to make full acknowledgment. 

Before leaving this subject, I wish to speak of one singular circumstance, to which — so far as 
I am aware no attention has ever been called — perhaps, no one has ever noticed it save myself. 
It is this— and as an old follower of Sir Isaac Walton I am competent to speak — that during the 
Civil War, the trout in the various streams of Washington, Warren and Essex counties increased 
fully from one to two hundred per cent. The explanation of this seemingly marvelous phenome- 
non is not far to seek, viz.: that so many of the tramps and farmers' boys had gone to the war, 
that the trout had a rest. This is a fact, and many of us fishermen would not repine if there was 
another war to take these '' pot " fishermen again away ! 

[43 J 



346 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

THE CHAMPLAIN CANAL. 

Upon the termination of the War of 1812, a very vigorous effort, 
says Johnson, was made to improve the means of transportation in 
New York state by the opening of canals along the main lines of 
travel and freightage. In fact some movements had been made in 
that direction before the war, but were abandoned at the beginning 
of hostilities. On the return of peace, however, the desire for a 
system of canals awoke with renewed energy, and under the zealous 
leadership of DeWitt Clinton, it soon found voice in legislative 
enactments. Although, Clinton, who. with Washington in 1789,' 
had early explored the present route of the Erie Canal, is deserving 
of all praise, yet the experiments both in Holland and in England 
had first directed his attention to the great commercial value of 
canals. Accordingly, with his far-seeing mind, he had recommended 
both the routes of the Erie and Champlain canals to the attention of 
the New York Legislature. In consequence of a special message of 
his to this effect, the Legislature agreed with his views, and one of 
the first canals provided for by an act passed by the Legislature — 
standing in respect to time with those of the Erie, Oswego and Cayu- 
ga — was the Champlain canal, the law for the construction of which 
was passed in February, 181 7. All of these canals having been made 
by the state at the public expense, the}' yet remain under the admin- 
istration of the state government as public property. The Champlain 
canal follows in its peaceful course, the same route which had so often 
been followed by hostile armies (especially that of General Burgoyne) 
and which was selected, though not used, as before stated, by the 
"Northern Inland Lock and Navigation Compan}'." 

The Champlain canal, which is seventy-three miles from Whitehall 
tc Albany and twenty-one from Sandy Hill, is forty feet wide at the 
surface, twenty-eight feet at the bottom and four feet in depth. It 
passes from Albany to Whitehall on Lake Champlain, connecting the 
Hudson river with the lake. This canal begins at Whitehall, at the 
head of sloop navigation on Lake Champlain, and, immediately ris- 
ing, by three locks, twenty-six feet, proceeds on a level five and one- 
half miles up the valley of Wood Creek, enters that stream, and fol- 
lows its channel for three miles, to a lock of ionr feet lift, which 
extends the navigation up the creek three and one-half miles further 

• Sec my " Reminiscences of Saratoga " for an account of this tour. 



THE CHAMPLAIN CANAL. 317 

to Fort Anne village, where, after rising by three loeks twenty-four 
feet, it leaves the creek and proceeds twelve miles on a summit level, 
through the towns of Fort Anne and Kingsbury to Fort Edward. 
Here it receives the waters of the Hudson, above the great dam in 
that river, by a feeder of half a mile in length and soon after descends 
thirty feet by three locks, into the Hudson below the dam. The great 
dam is 900 feet long, twenty-seven feet high and throws back an 
ample supply of water for the summit level. From Fort Edward the 
navigation is continued, for tlie present, down the channel of the 
Hudson eight miHs, to the head of Fort Miller Falls, around which it 
is carried by a canal on the east bank of the river, half a mile long, 
and having two locks of eighteen feet descent. From Fort Miller, the 
river is made navigable for nearly three miles further, by a dam at 
the head of Saratoga Falls,' just above which the canal leaves the 
river on the western side, and proceeds almost on a dead level for 
seventeen miles, through the towns of Greenwich, vSaratoga and Still- 
water, Schuyler's Flats and over Fish Creek by an aqueduct, to a 
point two miles below vStillwater village. From this place to Water- 
ford, where the canal enters the Mohawk, and meets the Erie canal 
(a distance of nine miles) it descends eighty-six feet by nine locks, 
six of which are in the town of Waterford." From Waterford, the 
Hudson is now navigable for sloops to Troy (three and a half miles 
below) by a dam across the latter place — iioo feet in length, nine feet 
high and having a sloop lock at its eastern extremity, 114 feet long, 
thirty feet wide, with a nine feet lift. The cost of this lock and dam 
was originally $92,270 — not to speak of the many expenses which have 
since been added not only for great improvements on the original design 
but also for keeping it in repair. Still, the canal has been of such 
benefit to Washington County alone, that that county could well ha\e 
assumed (had she been called upon to do so) the whole of the ex- 
pense. 



* It was at this point, it will be remembered that Bnrjyoyne with his armv, crossed over troni 
Washington County to Saratoga County, preparatory to his march upon Albany. 

* As illtistrative of what I have stated in the text a page or two before, the canal passes 
within sight of the fortifications thrown up by General Schuyler, when he retreated before the 
advance of Burgoyne. These earthworks, as before mentioned, can be plainly seen by the pas- 
senger on the railroad from Troy to Saratoga. 



348 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 



THE RAILROAD FROM SARATOGA TO WHITEHALL. 

The ground for the Saratoga & Whitehall Railroad was first broken 
in April, 1836.' The initiation of this road was due to the late Gideon 
M. Davison of Saratoga Springs, who being most indefatigable in the 
statistics of travel and business, could prepare and lay them before 
the public in a concise shape. The charter of the road, therefore, 
through his instrumentality, being secured, the capital was subscribed 
for and the construction of the road begun, but the financial crash of 
1837 came on before it had made much progress, and its managers 
were, accordingly, forced to suspend operations. Mr. Davison, how- 
ever, never lost faith in it, and kept steadily at work until he had 
secured its construction to the end of the route. The first year the 
road was carried through the " Upper Village " in Saratoga Springs, 
at a cost of sixty thousand dollars, when it was stopped for want of 
funds. It remained in statu quo until ten years after, when it was 
completed to Whitehall. The late Mr. Robert Patterson of Saratoga 
Springs superintended its construction, and when in December, 1846, 
the first train went up the road to Whitehall with a load of iron, he 
took with him seventy laborers, each armed with an axe, with which 

' In this connection, it may be of interest to my readers to say that the first railway in the 
United States was one of two miles long from Milton to Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1826. The cars 
were drawn by horses. The Baltimore & Ohio was the first passenger railway in America, fif- 
teen miles being opened in 1830, the .cars also being drawn by horses till the ne.xt year, when a 
locomotive was put on the track. It had an upright boiler and cylinder. The Mohawk & Hudson, 
sixteen miles, from Albany to Schenectady, was the next line, opened in 1831, and the cars were 
drawn by horses till the delivery of the locomotive "De Witt Clinton," which was built at the 
West Point founders. New York. This was the second locomotive built in the United States. 
The first was made at the same shop for the South Carolina Railway. The termini both at 
Schenectady and Albany were upon inclined planes with stationary engines. The first locomo- 
tive, however, was built in and sent from England in 1830 and named "The John Bull," and had 
its first trial at Bordentown, N. J. Joseph Wood who operated this locomotive died recently at 
Red Bank, N. J. On July 7, 1832, a railroad was first opened from Schenectady to Ballston. The 
time made on that day from Ballston to Schenectady was one hour and twenty-eight minutes, 
and the number of pas.sengers on the Saratoga and Schenectady Railroad, during the month of 
April, 1833, was 1,240, "being more," as Mr Davison's Saratoga paper says, "than four times the 
travel between Saratoga and the south during any former month so early in the season." The 
difficulty experienced in " Regatta " week at Saratoga in 1874, in carrying the crowds to the Lake 
— distant only three and one-half miles — shows how impossible it would be with no railroad to 
bring that number from Albany to Saratoga. 

This speed — fifteen miles an hour — was considered extraordinarj- at that time. Indeed, fears 
were expressed at the prospect even of a greater rate being attained. Thus, Colonel Stone, 
writing from Saratoga at that time to his paper, The Neiu York Cotinnercial Advertiser, says: 
" Were the velocity of these to be doubled there would be continued apprehensions of danger, in 
addition to disagreeable sensations of dizziness. But such is not the case now, and the pas.sen- 
gers are whirled along in commodious and elegant cars, without jolting or any other annoyance, 
and without the remotest fears for the safety of Hie or of limb ! " 



THE SARATOGA AND WHITEHALL RAILROAD. 349 

to cut away any forest trees that might have fallen upon the track. 
Previous to the completion of the road (and, for that matter, for many 
3'ears before) fine " Concord Coaches" ran to Whitehall, starting- froiri 
" Monto-omery Hall." in Saratoga Springs, under the proprietorship 
of the late General Joshua T. Blanchard. 

At first the road was laid on blocks of stone, but these were soon 
found, by their not giving (i. e. their inelasticity) to rack the cars 
too much, and wooden "sleepers" were substituted. The rails first 
used were long strips of iron, nailed to horizontal timbers. Often, 
however, the wheels would rip them up where they were joined — 
driving them through the flooring of the cars, to the great danger of 
the passenger's lives. These dismembered rails were very appro- 
priately called "snake-heads." The cars, moreover, which are des- 
cribed at that time in the Washington and Saratoga county news- 
papers as " spacious and elegant (what would then have been thought 
of the up to date Pullman and Wagner Palace cars ?) had each like 
the present railway carriages in Europe, three compartments, cur- 
tained and cushioned to contain eight passengers. Outside was a 
platform running the length of the car for the convenience of the 
conductor, who, while the cars were in motion, would, with one arm 
thrown around a window-casing for support, wnth the other collect 
the fares — -one of his hands (as there were no tickets in those days) 
being full of bank-bills. This, however, was not so hazardous a pro- 
ceeding as might be supposed, since the cars, which, the first year, 
were drawn by horses, travelled only at the rate of nine miles an 
hour. One of the first conductors on the railroad between Saratoga 
and Whitehall was Mr. Elisha Matthews. He remained in this employ 
— a zealous, gentlemanly and faithful man until his death about 1870. 

Since 1846, there have been great extensions of railroad facilities 
in this county. The first ground was broken for the Greenwich and 
Johnsonville railroad in 1857, a road which was completed to Green- 
wich in August, 1870. The Glens Falls Railroad Company, organ- 
ized in July, 1867, was soon afterwards built from Fort Edward to 
Glens Falls, but was soon leased in perpetuity to the Rensselaer and 
Saratoga Railroad Company. The latter road, however, was subse- 
ciuently leased to the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company, in whose 
hands it still is. The Delaware & Hudson Canal Company also con- 
structed a road (1874-5) called the New York & Canada Railroad, 
which extends northward from Whitehall, along the west shore of 



350 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Lake Champlain to the north bounds of the county and thence north- 
ward, connecting with other roads leading to Montreal. This is also 
managed by the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company as a part of its 
great system of coal roads, and ' ' long trains, laden with iron ore 
going south, or with coal going north, may daily be seen thundering 
along the rocky shores, where once resounded only the shrill scream 
of the panther, the deadlier war-whoop of Indian braves, or the 
triumphant shout of Putnam's rangers! " 



CHAPTER XXII. 

THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 

Washington County's Participation Therein — Enlistment of Companies I, K 
AND M — Assigned to the Second New York Provisional Regiment — Roster 
of These Companies — Movement of the Regiment to Camp Black; Thence 
TO Chickamauga Park, Tampa, Fla., Fernandina, Fla., and Camp Hardin, N. Y. 

Although it is not within the province of this work to give in detail 
all the causes which led up to the Spanish- American War, in which 
our National Guard played a prominent part, it is desirable to state 
briefly the events which led up to a result so momentous to this coun- 
try, especially as Washington County showed her patriotism in a 
splendid manner in this crisis. 

In 1895 the Cubans began their second great struggle for indepen- 
dence from the Spanish yoke and as the struggle continued the 
warmest sympathy of the liberty loving people of this country was 
elicited toward the suff^ering and oppressed Cubans. 

The Cuban Junta established itself in New York City and sought to 
aid the island in its struggle by sending out filibustering expeditions 
bearing arms and ammunition to the Cubans. These operations were 
not obnoxious to the people of this country, but the government did 
everything in its power to prevent and suppress them. Armed ves- 
sels were dispatched to suspected rendezvous, expeditions were pre- 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 351 

vented from sailing and some filibusters were arrested and impris- 
oned. 

Notwithstanding the efforts of our government to preserve the laws 
of neittrality, the sentiments of the people were strongly refleeted by 
leading newspapers and their utterances were taken by Spain as an 
indication of bad faith on the part of the United States, so that grad- 
ually the relations between the two countries became more and more 
strained. In the winter of 1898 the battleship Maine was sent to 
Havana on a peaceful mission, and while lying at anchor was blown 
up on the evening of February 15, 1898, and 266 of her seamen killed. 
Although the cause of the disaster has never been positively estab- 
lished, the people of the United States laid the deed at the door of 
Spain and popular sentiment clamored for war. In April, 1898, Con- 
gress decided upon war and President McKinley issued a dispatch 
recalling General vStewart L. Woodford, our ambassador at Madrid. 

War was declared on April 21st, 1898, and upon April 23 President 
McKinley issued a call for 125,000 volunteers, and at the same time 
expressed a desire that the regiments of the National Guard be util- 
ized for the service as far as their number would permit. 

On April 26th, an order was issued to all infantry organizations in 
the state requiring the commanding officers to "assemble at once 
their respective commands in uniform, in their armories, and there, 
by an individual expression, freely and voluntarily given, learn how 
many enlisted men of their organil^ations desire to be mustered into 
the service of the United States for the term of two years, unless 
sooner discharged, to serve where ordered by the proper authorities." 

The 9th Separate Company at Whitehall was composed entirely of 
Washington County men and the 32d Separate Company of Hoosick 
Falls and the i8th Separate Compan}' of Glens Falls were largely 
augmented by men of this county. 

Of the 9th Separate Company of Whitehall four officers and sixty- 
seven men volunteered for service; of the 32d Separate Company four 
officers and fifty-nine men volunteered and of the i8th Separate Com- 
pany four officers and eighty-two inen volunteered. All the com- 
panies subsequently recruited to their maximum strength and there 
was no difficulty in procuring men as an intense wave of patriotic 
zeal pervaded this county as well as the whole Union. 

The 9th Separate Company became Company I, the i8th Separate 



352 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Company became Company K and the 3 2d Separate Company became 
Company M, all of the Second Reg-iment, New York Volunteers. 

The rosters of these three companies follow ; as Companies K and M 
were formed upon the borders of Washington County and contained 
many Washington County boys the full roll of each is given : 



COMPANY I. 

Captain — Ernest A. Greenough. 

First Lieutenant — Emmett J. Gray. 

Second Lieutenant — Alanson D. Bartholomew. 

First Sergeant — John C. Hopson. 

Quartermaster-Sergeant — William G. Blanchard. 

Sergeants — Elisha M. Allen, Frank G. Rowland, George L. McKay, Benjamin 
F. Waters. 

Corpoials— Arthur F. Fish, Preston L. King, William C. McLaughlin, Mark R. 
McDonnell, James H. Hoy, William F. Hammond, Austin Baker, Albert D. 
Broughton, William H. Culver, Thomas E. Heffernan, Horatio S. Douglass, ■ 
Thomas Melvin. 

Musicians — William J. Doren, Patrick Hart. 

Artificer — Henry Davis. 

Wagoner — Robert A. Sinclair. 

Privates — John Adams, Alfred Blanchard, James H. Blanchard, William A. 
Blanchard, William S. Belden, Jesse M. Bellegarde, Smith C. Barrett, Henry W. 
Barrett, Robert M. Bartholomew, George S. Bartholomew, Albert T. Bromley, 
James W. Busteed, William J. Boyle, Albert Brunell, Frank Baty, John Bahen, 
John H. Cooper, Joseph Crosier, Daniel A. Crowley, Watson M. Carswell, Daniel 
Clarke, Oney Carrol, Napoleon J. Demers, James Doherty, John L. Eddy, James 
H. Eraser, Charles Fyfe, Daniel Flannery, Frank L. Gregory, John C. (iray, 
James Gould, Leonard J. Healey, Clarence B. Haskins, William A, Harvey, Ber- 
nard Hart, Benjamin D. Hart, Evan R. Jones, Clinton L. Jones, Henry Johnson, 
John J. Kelley, Thomas M. Kelley, Bert F. Kilburn. Ambrose Kinney, Nelson 
Lemay, Charles A. Lathen, Jesse M. Leigh, George H. Lafarr, Ira E. Manchester, 
Edward H. Martin, Walter P. Martindale, William A. Moore, George B. McCartee, 
Jr., John J. McGue, Joseph H. McKittrick, Harry A. McQueen, James McCormick, 
Edward B. McCaughin, Fred R. Nichols, Charles A. Nolan, James O'Hara, Carl D. 
Ottenburg, Frank Olcott, Jonas E. Paro, Emille O. Prefontaine, Albert G. Prefon- 
taine, Albert Prindle, George E. Rich, James P. Rowan, Arthur A. Russell, 
Michael J. Ryan, Matthew Ross, Jr., Charles Roberts, Daniel Roberts, Hugh P. 
Roberts, James B. Stockwell, Merton I. .Stafford, Joseph Stone, Jr., Maurice Shep- 
ardson, Herbert S. Tracy, George W. Taylor, Henry Taft, Thomas K. Thomas, 
Bertie E. Waters, Oscar Welch, Herbert E. Williams, Leverett O. Wilsev. 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 353 

COMPANY K. 

Captain — l^oyai L. Davis. 

First Lieutenant — Seldon W. Mott.* 

Second Lieutenant — Daniel J. Hogan. 

P^irst Sergeant — William B. Stevens. 

Quartermaster-Sergeant — Andrew J. Simons. 

Sergeants — Harley Cushman,* Erank H. Scott, Nelson A. Moss, William H. 
White. 

Corporals — Willard D. Norcross, Lewis A. Morris,* John H. Conway, Daniel 
Wood, Philiman H. Haselton, Frank L. Parks, Jr.. Frank H. LaLone, Harvey C. 
Prouty, Charles A. Dodge, Burton Akins, George O. Boldway, Frank D. Sansouci. 

Musicians — Loren A. Barney,* Adelbert Reynolds. 

Artificer — Henry A. Gilmour.* 

Wagoner — Carlos C. Patterson. 

Privates — Elro}^ A. Allen, Joseph Bishop, Arthur Bannister,* William H. 
Boyce, Walter A. Burchell, Edward Beecher,* Edward J. Bushman,* Ernest M. 
Boss, William W. Baldwin Walter D. Brown, John Cronin, George M..Call, Wil- 
lard Carpenter, Frank Carpenter, Frank M. Carter, Erastus J. Curtis, William 
Cooney, Paul F. Carpenter,* A¥illiam Denton, Thomas Durkee, Joseph A. Dufour, 
John M. Davies, Michael J. Enright, Alfred B. Gonyeo, Arthur W. Glenn,* John O. 
Holleran, William A. Hall, Robert S. Hall, Jr., Fred D. Harvey,* George L. Har- 
ris, George H. Holmes,* Ernest (). Huston, James J. Hogan, Elijah R. Johnson, 
Charles W. Jacobie, James Killough, Edward A. Kunkel, Henry G. LaRose, Wil- 
liam P. LaRose, Frank A. LaFountain, George H. LaClair,* (Jeorge B. LaLone, 
Michael J. Lynch, Fred A. LaRose, Charles B. McGrath,* Louis N. Mason, Henry 
V. Middleworth,* Howard McOmber, Edward F. Morrison,* Joseph V. Mitchell, 
Charles Myerson, Michael Murphy, Burt McDougall, Fred J. Narrow, William J. 
Newman,* James H. O'Connor, Herbert J. Plue, Praxton B. Pulver, Sej-mour 
Pratt, William A. Podvin, Ernest Reynolds,* Joseph A. Richardson, Royal T. 
Roach, Henry R. Rice, Eugene Raybine William L. Stevens, Lawrence C. 
Seelye, William Simard, Delbert D. Stickney,* Thompson E. Smith,* Dennis Sird, 
Thomas F. Small, Henry M. Tucker, Perry Tabor, George S. Underbill,* Alvah S. 
Vaughn,* Milford E. White, George S. Wood,* W'illiam A. Wier,* Michael J. 
Walsh, Joseph E. Williams, Warren A. Wilson,* Moses L. Wait,* John F. Young.* 



COMPANY M. 

Captain — Frank L. Stevens. 
First Lieutenant — Walter A. Wood, Jr. 
Second Lieutenant — Louis E. Potter. 
First Sergeant — Edward Gill. 
yuartcrmaster-Sergeant — Frank A. Rich. 



These were Washinj^ton County men. 

r 44 



354 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Sergeants — Benjamin W. Sugden, Clarence B. Soloman, Charles W. Bates, 
Andrew T. McLean. 

Corporals — William H. Straub, William F. Brien, Frederick M. Bates, Oscar G. 
Avery, Joseph F. Ross, George W. Manchester, Edward M. Woodworth, Manfred 

D. Kincaid, Archibald R. Waddell, Elbert O. Wing, Harry V. Hale, Harry A. 
Warhurst. 

Musician — Charles A. Prentiss. 

Artificer — John M. Closson. 

Wagoner — Lewis K. Howe. 

Privates— Albert F. Abel, Charles W. Allen, William S. Archer, John A. An- 
drews,* Charles E. Belair, Louis W. Bowers, Frederick J. P. Bain, George E. 
Brew, William C. Brew, Elmer E. Barnes, Sidney G. Bristol, Victor W. Babcock, 
James Bryant, Frank W. Buck, Daniel F. Beebe, Jr., Hugh P. Blackinton, William 
F. Coleman,* Harold H. Cole, John Coila,* Herbert S. Chapel, Amdy Christensen, 
Leon C. Closson, Joseph J. Conkl'ing,* Frank F. Chapin, William H. Clearman, 
Albert E. Clarke, William L. Carpenter, Clarence Dorr, Eugene DeLong, Robert 

E. Daggett, Joseph E. Delavergne,* Frank B. Davis, Norman B. Dale, Patrick J. 
Dempsey, Merritt B. Eldridge, Pierce R. Fadden,* Walter E. Fuller, Charles W. 
Fuller, Alfred Furkart, Frank H. Goodyear,* Clarence E. Gallup, Edmund Haynes, 
Frank H. Hopkins, George C. Hollister, George P. Hollis, George W. L. Hewitt, 
Larmon E. Joy, Raymond D. Johnson,* George F. Kincaid, Patrick O. Keefe, Leo 
J. Ladd, Samuel Logan, Albert F. Ladd, Charles H. Lapius, Roscoe C. Lansing, 
George W. McDowell, Michael McGrath,* Ray Myers, Almeron Mattison,* Frank 
B. Morse, William P. Madden, William B. T. Peacock, Aner E. Powers, Eugene P. 
Prindle, Frank A. Putnam, Thomas J. Quinn,* Andrew Rankin, Harry H. Rosen- 
berger, Charles A. Stillman, Charles P. Salmon, Moses Schweizer, Charles F. 
Stemp, Arthur M. Stemp, Raymond M. Sanford, Edward Thomas, Thomas T. 
Teague,* Sherman L. Wolf, Charles A. Worden, Charles G. Wilcox, William R. 
Williams, Daniel M. Wells, Jr., Frank B. Whipple, William Welch, Fred G. White, 
Franklin A. Welden, Alson L. Jones. 

An extract from the Whitehall Chronicle isgiven to show the spirit 
of enthusiastic patriotism that pervaded, not only the men going' to 
the front, but also the entire populace. And this description of the 
going forth of the Whitehall boys would also apply to those of many 
other places: 

"'At 12 o'clock every man was obliged to be at the Armory. The 
moving call was given at 3 a. m. It was not long after this hour that 
the bells and whistles of all classes began to sound out the announce- 
ment that all who intended to see the soldiers off had better get up as 
there would be no further opportunity to indulge in the charms of 
Morpheus until after five o'clock, and there was none. Canal street 
was gaily decorated for the coming parade, almost every residence 

* These were Washington County men. 



THE vSPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 355 

having- some display of national colors. The procession left the ar- 
mory at about 4.30; first marched the band, then Post Tanner and 
veterans not members of the Post, following- these marched the 
eig-hty-four officers and privates of the company in full army outfit. 
Next came fifty-two ex-members of the Ninth under command of 
Captain Patterson, a body of citizens under the leadership of W. A. 
Eraser brought up the rear. There were small bo3's everywhere, 
some big boys too carried baskets of cannon firecrackers which were 
exploded almost continuously along the route. Their reports with 
the music of the band, the clang of bells and the cheers of spectators 
i-nade vigorous combined harmony that certainly did justice to the 
occasion. Just as the company was opposite the flag bedecked Y. M. 
C. A. building the order was given to halt. The soldiers turned and 
stood facing the building at parade rest, while the ladies pinned flag 
badges on their coats, the souvenirs being presented by the Associa- 
tion. While this work was in progress and during the. hearty hand- 
shaking by some gentlemen of the Association that followed, the band 
played "The Star Spangled Banner" and St. Joseph's deep-toned 
bell rang with great vigor. After these courtesies the procession ad- 
vanced toward the depot. When opposite McGovern's store the vet- 
erans formed in open double column and with uncovered heads cheered 
with hearty good wnll, as the bluecoats of today marched between the 
lines. This was a thrilling spectacle, and one never to be forgotten 
by those who witnessed it. On reaching the depot the company 
marched close up to the cars and a crowd of thousands instantly 
closed around them, forming a compact mass of humanity. Whoever' 
was caught in that crowd could not move until the train left. The 
train of one baggage and two passenger coaches and engine No. 127 
was gaily decorated, the cars bearing the cloth streamer with the 
words "The Whitehall Boys." Hands were shaken through the car 
windows, and then amid admiring cheers the train departed. The 
Glens Falls train with the Eighteenth Company, joined it at Fort 
Edward and the cars bearing the Twenty-second of Saratoga and the 
Thirty-second of Hoosick Falls later became part of the same train. 
Ovations were tendered the soldiers at every point along the route. 
As the great inass of people turned to leave the station there were 
many breakdowns. 

As mothers, sisters and sweethearts realized the separation from 
their gallant boys and the possibility that it might be forever their 



35(5 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

sorrow was scarcely to be measured by the tears that flowed. Indeed 
the affair really had more the semblance of a funeral than a celebra- 
tion. The stalwart men arrayed in full army habit, certainly pre- 
sented a grim appearance as they marched with measured tread, pre- 
pared if commanded to face the guns of a foreign foe." 

Companies I, K and M first went to Troy, N. Y., where they joined 
the other companies of the Second Regiment and then proceeded to 
Camp Black, at Hemstead Plains, Long Island, where it became the 
command of Colonel E. E. Hardin, now governor of part of the 
Phillipine Islands. 

The Second Regiment was mustered into the United States service 
at Camp Black and there remained until May i8, 1898, when it started 
for Chickamauga, Ga. The New York Herald speaking of the regi- 
ment at that time, said: 

'• In excellent trim, with equipments complete and all details of its 
transportation promptly executed, the Second Provisional Regiment, 
formed of crack separate companies, left for Chickamauga yesterday 
under the command of Colonel E. E. Hardin, formerly of the vSeventh 
United States Infantr}-. The Second contains a small percentage of 
raw recruits as compared with other regiments. A committee of the 
Sons of the Revolution presented a flag to the regiment before its 
departure. " 

The regiment reached Chickamauga on the night of May 20 and 
remained in camp there until June i. Here the command first suf- 
fered from the lack of good water, but it is a notable fact that from 
first to last the Washington County boys endured heat, privations and 
the performances of duty with little sickness, although the regiment 
as a body suffered rather severely. 

On June ist four regiments, including the Second New York, left 
Chickamauga for Tampa, Florida, and the beginning of the journey 
was notable through the fact that the men had to walk from the camp 
to the railway station at Rossville — a distance of nearly eleven miles. 
This trying march was easily performed and shows the fine condition 
of the men at that time. The regiment reached Tampa on June 3 
and there remained until July 26. During the month of July a vast 
amount of sickness occurred among the troops stationed at Tampa and 
the Second Regiment was invaded by the malady officially designated 
as typhoid fever. 

That this fine regiment did not get into Cuba was a source of regret 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 357 

to both officers and men and they would probably have suffered less 
in battle than they did in the fever stricken camp at Tampa. How 
near they came to g'oing- with General Shafter is shown in Colonel 
James W. Lester's " History of the Second Regiment." He says: 

" About 7 o'clock on the evening of July 12th orders were received 
for the regiment to be in readiness to go aboard transports for San- 
tiago on the 13th. The process of packing up was again undertaken 
and early in the morning of the 13th the tents of the first and second 
battalions were struck and the tentage, rations and camp equipage 
put aboard the train for Port Tampa. 

Matters came to a standstill at this point and the regiment waited. 
About 12 o'clock on the evening of the 13th a notice came to the com- 
manding officer that the expedition would not be started, presumably 
owing to the fact that yellow fever had broken out among the troops 
at Santiago. This was a great disappointment to the men. who had 
hoped not only to get away from the unsanitary camp at Tampa, but 
also to do its part in the work of the army at the front." 

On Jul}' 26 the Second Regiment was moved to Fernandina, Fla., 
where it remained until August 24th when it was moved to Camp 
Hardin, near Troy, N. Y. On September 15th the men of the regi- 
ment were given a thirty days furlough at the expiration of which 
they were inustered out of the United States service. 

In closing this brief history of the regiment of which they formed an 
important part, it is but just to say that the boys of Washington County 
discharged their duties as soldiers uncomplainingly and throughout 
displayed a patriotism worthy of natives of the soil which witnessed 
some of the hardest battles fought for the independence and estab- 
lishment of this sreat Union. 



358 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

Early Sketches and Biographies — Peter Carver's Journae — General Israel 
Pt^TNAM — General Philip ScHuyLER — Colonel John Williams. 

EXTRACTS FROM PETER CARVER'S JOURNAL. 

Peter Carver was one of the first English settlers of what is now 
Washing-ton County, N. Y. In 1708, while still a youth, he was 
adopted by the Mohawk Iroquois as a member of the tribe, and lived 
almost continuously among them for nearly thirty years. The French 
chroniclers call him a Dutchman, or sometimes a Fleming, but there 
seems to be no doubt of his English parentage, on the father's side at 
least. He died in New York City shortly after the English conquest. 
His manuscript journal in two volumes is known to have been in Bos- 
ton in 1775, but with the so-called log of the Mayflower and other old 
records, was taken to England in that year, where the second volume 
still remains. The original of the first volume appears to be lost, but 
there is a torn copy in Amsterdam, where there is also a Dutch trans- 
lation of many portions, which supplies most of the deficiencies of the 
English copy. A French version of the account of the fight at 
Tadoussac on the St. Lawrence in 1708, is pasted into the town 
records of Honfleur. The greater part of the journal, including the 
following extract (which is translated from the Dutch), has never been 
printed. 

" But the winter was not all peace and quiet and frozen toes. One 
night when the snow was at its deepest, and the cold and winds at 
their fiercest, it may have been towards the end of February, I came 
in, weary from a day spent in dragging firewood through the snow, to 
find the house more than usually full of noise and smoke. I sat for 
some time by the fire trying to warm myself, scolded by the women 
whose labor of cooking I impeded, teased by mischievous children 
who raced unrestrained up and down the cabin, and with my eyes 
tearful and smarting from the smoke; and then sought my bed, 
homesick and dispirited, very thoroughly tired of this life with the 
savages and very hopeless that I should ever be able by their means 
to help the cause to which my father had pledged me. 

After some hours of troubled sleep I found myself lying awake and 
listening intently. Yet there were but the usual sounds to hear. Out- 



EXTRACTS FROM PETER CARVER'S JOURNAL. 359 

side the wind roared and the trees ereaked as they bowed to the gale 
which brought now and then the far yell of a famished wolf, while 
ag-ainst the bark wall by my head the drifting snow rattled and rattled 
again. No one stirred in the long house and the deep breathing of 
the sleepers warranted that they would not stir for light cause. At 
length, finding myself unable to sleep again, I rose and walked down 
the cabin past fire after fire. Still no one moved. The fires had died 
to faint embers, for it must have been well past midnight; and around 
each fire, on shelves covered with skins of bears or winter-killed deer, 
lay a household of my red brethren. Here an old warrior scarred and 
weather-beaten ; there a weary squaw who of us all had best reason to 
forget the hour of waking, for in the morning hers would be the task 
to bring in the wood, build the fire, and prepare the meal, after which 
her only recreation would be to join a circle of gossiping women at 
scraping and chewing filthy skins until it shotild be time for more 
cooking and wood-chopping. Next the squaw might be sleeping a 
baby boy, perhaps some day to be the terror of the moose by. the 
mountain rivers, or of the lonely farmer beside the St. Lawrence — 
perhaps to be wrapped in furs and buried in a snowdrift before spring. 
Of all my house-people not one was awake, save that from beside the 
third fire there rose to lick my hand The Muskrafs big and bony dog, 
who had concealed himself somewhere, when his clan had been 
driven forth at dusk to roll themselves together in their lair in the 
glen. Now he begged mutely for mercy and I left him beside the 
fire while I went on to the west door of the long house, and, raising 
the moose-hide curtain, looked out into the night. Against the sky 
line the trees were swaying; in the clearing the snow flew here and 
there in a faint mist from the edge of a drift. All around stretched 
the wilderness; a very howling wilderness it was that night, of which 
I knew only that it stretched over thousands of miles of snow. In all 
those vast spaces there was no white man but myself and they on the 
rock of Quebec who sought my life. My only refuge was the foul- 
smelling cabin behind me and my only friends the ignorant savages 
whom it sheltered. The same stars which had looked down so kindly 
on my old home in Leyden looked coldly on me now. Cold and lonely 
was all the world, and I would have said that I was the only creature 
awake had not the dark form of a wolf suddenlj'' framed itself against 
the snow as with a snarl he leaped aside from the refuse heaped near 
our door and vanished into the forest. 



360 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

HURONS ON THE WAR PATH. 

The sudden movement broke my reverie, and, wondering- what had 
startled the beast, I dropped the curtain and turned again towards my 
bed. In the comparative warmth of the cabin I realized that the cold 
air of the doorway had chilled me, so I sought in a heap of furs in the 
end compartment a bear-skin to my liking. A sudden cold draught 
struck me on the legs, and over my shoulder. I saw a tall Indian lift 
the curtain and pass in, followed closely by a companion of slighter 
figure. The tall man stepped quietly to the second fire, which still 
glowed with a dull red, and, stooping, laid upon it some strips of 
birch bark, from which his breath quickly awakened a flame. The 
rising firelight flickered and danced on the smoky roof of the cabin, 
on the bunched ears of corn that hung from the rafters, on the house- 
hold gear that cumbered the floor, and on the forms of the many 
sleepers, all so familiar to my eyes; yet all changed, and strange in 
the presence of these our enemies ; for the burning bark showed me 
also the vigorous figure of the man who had kindled it, and by his 
dress and his painted face I knew him to be a Huron on the war path. 

On the instant he rose to the full height of his tall stature, poised 
his tomahawk and looked about him. His eye gleamed with satisfac- 
tion as it fell on the Muskrat; and, without turning, he beckoned 
silently to his companion and strode forward to fulfil his errand of 
blood. The younger man drew the tomahawk from his girdle and 
turned to follow. Thus for an instant he stood with his back towards 
me, and not three feet away. Then I sprang upon this Huron and 
caught him in a tight grip, locking his arms fast to his sides. The 
sudden assault no doubt surprised him, but he uttered never a sound 
and we wrestled there. I quickly found that though he was the more 
supple, I was quite a match for him in strength ; so it seemed a fair 
contest to see if he could wriggle out of my grasp before I could tire 
him. He was slippery as a snake, and as full of twistings and writh- 
iriRS, yet I held him. Had I but lifted up my voice, a dozen Mohawks 
would have fallen on my foe; but I was breathless and excited, and, 
to speak the truth, had no thought of aught but my twisting enemy. 
He was as silent as I, but for him it was the part of wisdom. 

As we wrenched and rocked the big man turned swiftly towards us, 
and for the moment The Muskrat's scalp was safe, as with great 
strides the Huron made for me. From one I had quite forgotten 



EXTRACTS FROM PETER CARVER'vS JOURNAL. 361 

came my rescue. A i^rowl and a flash, and the oreat dog" was at the 
throat of the tall Huron, who went over like a falling tree. Then I 
found m.y voice, and shouted lustily just as my fellow got his leg 
inside mine, and tripped me, so that we both fell backwards, I under- 
neath, he still caught in my grip, coming down with a mighty crash 
upon a row of well-filled earthen pots that stood by the fire. Though 
I held the Huron yet, he had now his right arm free from the elbow 
down. He dropped his tomahawk as we lay there, but clutched the 
knife that hung by a cord from his neck, and began to slash at me, all 
hampered as he was, while I kept shc^uting and yelling with all the 
breath I had. 

THE MUSKRAT TO THE REvSCUE. 

From all the fires men and squaws came trooping, rubbing every 
one his eyes in hope to discover the cause of this mighty racket. 

Now the big Huron was on his feet again and rushed for the door, 
knocking down a squaw who came tumbling into his path ; but before 
he could reach the air the dog had him by the leg. The stone hatchet 
fell, crushing the beast's shoulder, but the dog held on. Again it fell 
and the dog sank limply to the earth with a moan. The Huron was 
free only to be banged in the face with a charred log in the hands of 
an old squaw, and grasped at the same instant by a dozen stout arms 
which dragged him back, and tied him. All this I did not see, for I 
was still on the ground wincing as blow after blow of the stone knife 
cut my leg, and I felt my strength beginning to fail with the loss of 
blood. 

I heard a word of surprise in the Muskrat's harsh voice, and tny 
enemy was pulled off me. I climbed to my feet, and watched the 
squaws build up the fires till the long house was as bright as day. 
Our prisoners were bound with deer-skin thongs to the posts of the 
cabin and stood panting, while the White Partridge mourned over her 
brok'in pots, and an old man bound up some bad cuts of the stone 
knife in my right leg, and wiped me clean of the paste mixed of 
ashes, blood and hominy with which I was dripping. The Indians 
made much of me, but the real hero of the night lay dying, his head 
and shoulder crushed with tomahawk blows. 

In the morning our captives talked freely. A large war party had 

[45 J 



3fi2 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

gone ag-ainst Canajoharic, but the omens being bad had returned 
again. These two, however, had some special longing for scalps, and 
had lagged behind to hunt for us. They had come very near to being- 
successful. We found their trail, or what the drifting snow had left 
of it, and it was plain that only these two had come our way, and that 
the main party was beyond pursuit, even had we the men to fight 
them. It v/as decided that Ondessus, the old warrior, should be 
burnt at Canajoharic ; but before we could take him there he escaped, 
with two arrows in him, and must have died in the woods, for he 
never got back to Canada. The young man remained a captive until 
spring, and then, going with a party to Oneida, was adopted by a 
squaw in place of her dead son, and finally became an Oneida chief of 
note. 

This night's work made me a firm friend in my adversary, the 
Muskrat, and, in fact, went a great way towards gaining me the good- 
will of all the Mohawks, and now that I had fought for them, as a 
manner of speaking, I had no thought of leaving them. Yet to this 
day when a pot is broken in the House of the Bear, the squaws will 
say, ' Peter has been dancing again with the Hurons. ' " 

ISRAEL PUTNAM. 

A sketch of General Israel Putnam is exceedingly appropriate since 
he filled such a prominent part in the early histor}^ of Washington 
County. 

Israel Putnam is often confounded with General Rufus Putnam, 
who was prominent as an officer of artillery at the Battles of Saratoga 
and under whose supervision Fort Putnam, overlooking West Point, 
was constructed some years later. He was born in West Salem, 
Massachusetts, January yth, 1718. In 1755, ^^ raised and commanded 
a company for the '' old French War, " and has been noted in the 
course of our narrative, greatly distinguished himself by his courage. 
He was promoted to Major in 1757, to Lieutenant-Colonel in 1759 and 
Colonel in 1764. He commanded a Connecticut regiment in the Ex- 
pedition against Havana and was with Colonel Bradstreet in his mem- 
orable campaign against the western Indians. After the expiration 
of his term of service, he was several times elected to various civil 
offices in Connecticut. In 1773, he went with his second cousin, 
Rufus Putnam, Thaddeus Lyman, Roger Eno and others to examine 



GENERAL ISRAEL PUTNAM. 363 

lands in Florida, that were to be granted to the colonial officers and 
soldiers who had served in the French War.' Returning the following 
year to his home at Pomfret, Conn., he resumed his occupation as a 
farmer. On hearing of the Battle of Lexington in 1775 — the news 
being brought by a swift messenger who continued on his way to 
New York, Philadelphia and the southern colonies — he unhitched his 
horse from the plow and at once rode to the scene of action. Wash- 
ington, then in supreme command, was only too glad to avail himself 
of his services. He, thereupon, returned to his home, recruited a 
regiment among his farmer neighbors, and marched to Cambridge, 
arriving there in time to take part in the Battle of Bunker Hill. He 
was commissioned — for his services on that occasion — a Brigadier 
General by the Assembly of Connecticut, April 26th, 1775, and Major- 
General by the Continental Congress June 19, 1775. He was in com- 
mand at Peekskill, when the attack was made by Sir Henry Clinton 
on Forts Clinton and Montgomery, and has been greatly blamed for 
not bringing his forces to General George Clinton's relief, which some 
critics say might have prevented the capitulation of those forts. 

General Putnam has been, not only in this instance, but in others 
severely criticized for his apparent lukewarmness at this time ; some 
even going so far as to intimate that he was in the pay of the British 
Government to act the part of a traitor. This, however, after a care- 
ful investigation of the evidence, I do not believe. He was ignorant 
and, while well versed in Indian warfare, was utterly incompetent to 
meet and cope with trained soldiers in the field. Still, this is very 
different from calling him a traitor to his country. 

During the years 1778-9, he was engaged in the western part of 
Connecticut with head-quarters usually at Danbury, co-operating with 
the force in the Highlands. It was at this time that he made his 
almost miraculous escape from General Tryon's troops by riding down 
the stone steps at Horseneck in the town of (jreenwich, Ct. When 
the army went into winter quarters at Morristown in 1779, Putnam 
made a short visit to his family at Pomfret. On his return, however, 
to camp, and just before reaching Hartford, he had a stroke of paraly- 
sis, which of course, incapacitated him from active service. His re- 
maining years were accordingly spent at home, and he died in Brook- 
lyn, Connecticut, on the 19th of May, 1790. 

.1 This must, of course, have been dcine by some arrangement with Spain— since Florida, at 
that time, was a Spanish colony. 



364 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 



, - GENERAL PHILIP SCHUYLER. 

This history has had much to sa}^ about General Philip Schuyler, 
who, indeed, during the Burgoyne Campaign, especially, was on the 
American side, its central figure. His ancestor, moreover — Philip 
Pieterson Van Schuyler — the first of the line in America, also occu- 
pied a prominent place in the '" Old French War," having, as it will 
be recalled, built in 1689 " Old Fort Saratoga," the site of which is on 
a part of the soil of Washington County, nearly opposite the present 
village of Schuylerville, N. Y. 

For these reasons I have thought that the reader would gladly wel- 
come the following sketch of the two members of the Schuyler fam- 
ily who were so distinguished in the early annals of Washington 
Count}' : 

Two hundred and fifty years ago a young Dutchman, Philip Pieter- 
sen Van Schuyler, came from Holland and settled in the town of 
Rensselaerwyck, known today as Albany. He represented the best 
type of Dutch manhood, being brave, intelligent, energetic and relig- 
ious. He was a pioneer in the best sense of the word and in addition 
was a commander of men and an organizer of industry. He w^as, like 
Sir William Johnson, eminent as a leader, preserving friendly rela- 
tions with the Indians, directing the conquest of the wilderness, and 
aiding newly arrived immigrants to obtain a foothold in the valleys of 
the Hudson and the Mohawk. He married soon after his arrival, and 
had a numerous family. 

Of his children Pieter, the eldest son, was the most conspicuous. 
With Dutch thrift, he circulated a petition, presented it in person, 
and obtained a royal charter in 1688 for the city under the new name 
of Albany. Incidentally with the incorporation came his appointment 
as Mayor. The Mayoralty was more important in colonial days than 
at the present time. It had military and legal as well as executive 
obligations, and in general jurisdiction was almost the equal of the 
governorship. On account of the exigencies of the time, the Mayor 
was the Indian Commissioner or Agent. 

In 1689 the war broke out between England and France, affording 
the Mayor the opportunity of proving himself as brilliant a soldier as 
he was a statesman. From this period up to his death in 1724 his life 
was one of the chief glories of New York. He was indefatigable ; he 
kept his own property well in hand, organized the people of northern 



GENERAL PHILIP SCHUYLER. 365 

New York into military companies, established forts at strategic 
points, led several expeditions into Canada, then an appendage of the 
French crown, made treaties with the Puritan colonies in New Eng- 
land and alliances with the Indian tribes in the Empire State. When 
affairs were looking dark for the colony, he took a delegation of In- 
dian chiefs across the sea and presented them to Queen Anne. It is 
hard to say which produced the greatest sensation at the English cap- 
ital — the Dutch Mayor or the stalwart Iroquois. They were enter- 
tained in the lavish style of the old-fashioned hospitality, which, ac- 
cording to old historians, nearly ruined the Honorable Pieter's diges- 
tion and half demoralized his redskin colleagues. But it had the effect 
desired. When the chiefs returned laden with clothing, jewels, arms, 
toys, watches and baubles they created such a furor among the Iro- 
quois that from that time on, the Mayor had no difficulty in gathering 
an Indian army whenever needful. The historians of the time are 
singularly unanimoiis; the English, Canadians and Americans pro- 
nouncing Pieter the best soldier and statesman of his period, while 
the French chroniclers refer to him as the most ferocious and blood- 
thirsty enem}' of the King of France. The fame of Pieter has ob- 
scured his brothers Abraham, Arent and John, who were gallant offi- 
cers and public-spirited citizens, the latter also having been Mayor of 
Albany. Pieter might have had a title had he so desired, but when 
knighthood was offered him by Queen Anne he refused the honor. 
He explained his declination on two grounds: first that it might hum- 
ble his brothers, who were just as good men as he, and second, that 
it might make the women of his family vain. Pieter's bravery came 
as much from his mother as his father. The former, Margarita Van 
Schlichtenhorst, was living in the fort at Albany when a party of sol- 
diers came to seize the place. The Colonel, her son, was away at the 
time, and the men attached to the house were at their wit's ends, but 
the woman was ecpial to the emergency. She summoned the men, 
called them to arms and drove out the assailants. 



GENERAL SCHUYLER OF THE REVOLUTION. 

In the next generation the most important figure was that of 
Colonel Philip, Jr., Pieter's eldest son. According to his tombstone 
he "was a gentleman approved in several public employments." He 
was a faithful soldier, a shrewd statesman, and a good business man. 



366 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The fourth jjeneration brings upon the boards the greatest of the 
family. This was Major-General Philip Schuyler, who was born in 
1733, and died in 1804. He was a man who could have succeeded in 
any calling, so well rounded was his mental and moral equipment. 
Webster pronounced him second only to Washington among the great 
Revolutionary heroes. At the breaking out of the Revolution, he 
was practically the head of the Schiiyler familv. He had wealth, 
power and culture ; he held a commission under the British crown, 
and could, had he so desired, received knighthood. His interests 
were bound up in the English cause, and to espouse the cause of the 
colonies seemed to mean ruin. He was an aristocrat by birth, breed- 
ing and association. Nevertheless when the conflict came he threw 
up his commission and gave himself to the revolutionary cause. His 
superb career during the seven years' war is known to every one, and 
it is generally conceded that it was his genius which won the battle of 
Saratoga. After the revolution he took an active part in public 
affairs, serving as Congressional delegate, and as a United States Sen- 
ator. 

General Schuyler was not covetous of public office. From boyhood 
he was marked by an equanimity seldom found among the children of 
the wealthy. He was gentle, and generous to a fault. Under the 
law of primogeniture, which then prevailed, he was entitled to the 
major part of the paternal estate. He refused to accept it, however, 
and shared the patrimony with his brothers and sisters. The first 
half of the eighteenth century was not an age when education flour- 
ished. Conviviality and social pleasure engrossed the attention of the 
higher classes, but 3^oung Schuyler made himself conspicuous even 
then by his studious habits. In this determination he was greatly 
aided b)'' his mother, Cornelia Van Cortlandt Schuyler. He was a 
fluent French scholar, had a good knowledge of Dutch, German and 
Latin, excelled in mathematics, and was more than proficient in civil 
and military engineering. 

The first recognition of his ability came when he was a young man. 
The Commissary Department of the British army was in a muddled 
condition, and Lord Viscount Howe, the commander, selected young 
Schuyler to take charge of a more important branch of the work. 
There was a protest from many officers who resented the placing over 
them of what they called a boy. Lord Howe is said to have replied 
that he did not like to appoint a boy, but when a boy was the only 



GENERAL SCHUYLER OF THE REVOLUTION. 3G7 

one who could do the work properly, he had to appoint him. It was 
just before this time, September 17, 1755, that Philip Schuyler mar- 
ried Catherine Van Rensselaer, a noted beauty of the period, daugh- 
ter of Colonel John Van Rensselaer. The choice was a happy one, as 
the wife possessed the determination and heroism of the husband. 
Her daughter wrote concerning her: 

" Perhaps I may relate of my mother, as a judicious act of her kind- 
ness, that she not infrequently sent a milch cow to persons in povert3^ 
* * * When the Continental army w^as retreating before Burgoyne 
she went up in her chariot with four horses to Saratoga to remove her 
household articles. While there, she received directions from Gen- 
eral Schuyler to set fire to his extensive fields of wheat — which she 
did with her own hands — and to induce his tenants and others to do 
the same rather than suffer them to be reaped by the enemy. She 
also sent her horses on for the use of the army, and returned to 
Albany on a sled drawn by oxen." 

Of his chivalr}^ the best witness was his adversary. General Bur- 
goyne. This British commander in the House of Commons delivered 
a speech in which he held General Schuyler up to the admiration of 
Parliament. He said: " By orders a very good dwelling-house, ex- 
ceedingly large storehouses, great sawmills, and other outbuildings, 
to the value altogether perhaps of ten thousand pounds, belonging to 
General Schuyler at Saratoga, were destroyed by fire a few days 
before the surrender. One of the first persons I saw after the conven- 
tion was signed was General vSchuyler, and when I expressed to him 
my regret at the event which had happened to his property, he desired 
me to think no more of it, and said that the occasion justified it 
according to the rules and principles of war. He did more, he sent 
an aide-de-camp to conduct me to Albany, in order, as he expressed 
it, to procure better quarters than a stranger might be able to find. 
That gentleman conducted me to a very elegant house, and to my 
great surprise presented me to Mrs. Schuyler and her family. In that 
house I remained during my whole stay in Albany', with a table with 
more than twenty covers for me and my friends, and every other pos- 
sible demonstration of hospitality." This home in Albany saw all the 
great men and women of the land. The library was the best collec- 
tion of books in the colony. The room or den was a favorite resort 
of Aaron Burr, who came here when a member of the Legislature at 
Albany to prepare his cases and write his orations. Here he met the 



368 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

daughter of General Schuyler, whom he was to make a widow by- 
shooting her husband, Alexander Hamilton. During General Schuy- 
ler's term in the Senate he displayed great political wisdom and 
statesmanship. He foresaw the future financial greatness of the 
country and was among the first advocates of a national bank. 

General vSchuyler was born at the family mansion in Albany the 
2 2d of November, 1733, and like Dr. Franklin, was baptized on the 
day of his birth. He died on Sunday, the i8th of November, 1804, 
nearly seventy-one years of age. The tidings of his death were 
received with sincere and profound sorrow , throughout the United 
States as well as in Europe, his funeral on the 21st of November being 
attended by an immense concourse of the citizens of that town and 
the surrounding county, and his remains were entombed, with mili- 
tary honor, in the family burial-vault of General Abrahain Ten 
Broeck. They were afterwards removed to the burial-vault of the 
Rensselaer and Schuyler families, and afterwards, when the tomb 
gave way to the construction of railways the remains were removed 
to the Albany Rural Cemetery. A handsome monument — to use the 
words of Horace — "'plain in its neatness," was erected to the memory 
of this distinguished soldier of the Revolution, in October, 1871. On 
the pedestal of the shaft (which is of Quincy granite) are these words: 

Major-General 
PHILIP SCHUYLER, 

BORN AT ALBANY 

NOV. 22, 1733, 

DIED NOV. l8th, 1804. 

The following sketch of Colonel John Williams, a New York patriot 
and one of Washington County's most revered sons will, I am sure, be 
gladly perused by those residents of Washington County who are in- 
terested in its earl}^ beginnings. I take it from the English Post of 
December 8, 1900. Indeed, a history of Washington County would 
not be complete without it. 

The Fourth of July, 1609, was germinal the Fourth of July, 1776. 
On that day the first white man entered the territory of New York, 
and then began that series of events which resulted in the nation's 
independence. He was a Frenchman, Samuel Champlain. He had 
founded the colony of Canada, the city of Quebec, and discovered and 



COLONEL JOHN WILLIAMS. 369 

descended the lake to which he gave his name. He was accompanied 
by two other Frenchmen and sixty Hnron Indians. They met and 
attacked a force of Iroquois, the inveterate enemies of the Hurons, 
south of historic Ticonderoga. Champlain and his two companions 
were dressed in gaudy uniforms and armed with arquebuses. The 
Iroquois, terrorized by the strange-looking beings and the deadly 
effect of their firearms, retreated after losing several chiefs. This was 
a fatal victory for the French nation. Champlain made for it endur- 
ing enemies of the most numerous and powerful tribe of Indians. 
For a century and a half they were the allies of the English in the 
three French and English wars in America. 

In 1773, John Williams, a young English physician and siirgeon, 
was directed to the town of Salem, then called New Perth. He was 
born in Barnstaple, Devonshire, in 1752. He was a imiversity grad- 
uate, with diploma to practice medicine and surgery. He had walked 
the Hospital of St. John, London, and had served as surgeon's mate 
on a British man-of-war. He brought a complete case of surgical in- 
struments, which became of invaluable service to him and his country 
in the then unforeseen but impending war. On his arrival he found 
the small-pox prevailing as an epidemic. By his self-sacrificing and 
successful service he endeared himself to his people. His fame spread 
throughout the country, and his practice became extensive and lucra- 
tive. He applied his earnings to the purchase of land, building saw 
and grist mills, making farms, and in other ways developing the 
resources and fostering the industries of the covmty. He then erected 
a mansion in Salem, which is now known as the "Williams Home." 

WILLIAMS DELEGATE TO CONGRESS. 

The young physician identified himself with the patriot party in the 
issues that were then agitating the colonies. Though he was a com- 
missioned officer of the Government under half-pay, when the conflict 
opened at Lexington and Concord, he led the people of his county in 
preparations for war. When the first Provincial Congress was called 
to meet in New York city, May 20, 1775, he was unanimously elected 
delegate from the county. He was then only twenty-three years of 
age. This testimony to the confidence of the people in his ability and 
wisdom is emphasized by the proximity of the county to Canada and 

I 46 J 



370 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the certainty that it would speedily become involved in the war as the 
highway for the British army. He served in this and all the succeed- 
ing- sessions until their expiration. He was placed upon the most im- 
portant committees, and assigned special service that required excep- 
tional knowledge and prudence, ; He was on the committee to draft 
the letter to the northern counties concerning invasion from Canada, 
on that to confer concerning the capture of Fort Ticonderoga, and on 
that to organize troops and prepare rules and regulations and to devise 
plans for adjustment of the differences with Grekt Britain. 

He was appointed by the Congress, Colonel of the First Charlotte 
■County Regiment, and surgeon subject to requisition by the Conti- 
nental service. When the Provincial Congress-was succeeded by the 
New York Legislature,. 1781, he was elected to^ the Ass'eriibly. He 
had so demonstrated his ability as a legislator that he was elected to 
the Senate for three tern^s of four years each, from' 1783 to 1795. 
There is no other similar instance in the records of' New York of so 
)^oung a man serving thus qoptinuously, and with such signal ability. 
He was associated with and frequently opposed by the ablefit lawyers, 
jurists and statesmen of the State. His knowledge of the' Subjects of 
legislation and his power as a speaker were an occasion of wonder to 
his seniors. These were displayed in the New York Constitutional 
Convention at Poughkeepsie, June,, 1788, which ratified the Constitu- 
tion of the United States and, ponstituted New York a member of the 
Federal Union. In that convention were such men as John Jay, 
Richard Morris, Alexander Hamilton, Robert Livingston, George 
Clinton and Philip Schuyler. Dr. Williams" speech followed Hamil- 
ton's, which he opposed. 

While a member of the New York Senate, 1793. he was chosen to 
the United States House of Representatives, and re-elected to the 
next term. Congress was then held in Philadelphia. , The great men 
of the nation were in it; great subjects were before it; internal and 
international questions and relations were to be, (Settled. Williams 
was the peer of those who were trained in law and the science of gov- 
ernment. Melancthon L. Woolsey, an erninent^ lawyer, a former 
opponent, wrote to him: " I thank you for the part you have taken in 
the Federal Legislature on all subjects of national importance." He 
was the first to secure legislative action providing for canal construc- 
tion. His resolution in the New York Senate, February 15, 1791, 
providing for a joint committee of the Senate and Assembly, of which 



COLONEL JOHN WILLIAMS. 371 

he was appointed chairman, contemplated canal communication be- 
tween the Hudson River and the north and west by the lakes. On 
February 7, 1792, his bill for the construction of the proposed canals 
passed, and became a law March 30, 1792. He became a stockholder 
and director in the Northern Inland Lock Navigation Company for 
connecting the Hudson with Lake Champlain, and devoted much time 
and money to its construction. We do not know who first suggested 
canals in America; but we know from the Record that General Wil- 
liams was the first to frame and introduce and secure the passage of 
an act of Legislature^ for their construction. 

WILLIAMS' AVORK IN THE ARMY. 

Colonel Williams's services as an army officer were valuable to the 
countr}'. In i775-'76 his time was divided between his legislative and 
military duties. His regiment, which he had raised and mainly sup- 
ported financially, he kept employed in defending the frontier and in 
other ways as its assistance was required by the government. The 
orders of Generals Gates, Schuyler, St. Clair and Heath, preserved 
among the " Williams Papers, " are evidence of this. Thus General 
vSt. Clair ordered him to his relief at Fort Ticonderoga, adding that 
" with him and others he could laugh at all the enemy could do." 
General St. Clair had retired from the fort when Colonel Williams 
reached Skenesborough to Fort Ann, where the first battle in Wash- 
ington County was fought. Colonel Williams was present with his 
force. This battle at Fort Ann, resulting in the defeat of the British, 
was of vital importance. It was initial to Bennington Heights and 
Stillwater or Saratoga Springs. If the British had won they would 
have avoided Bennington Heights and carried out the plan of uniting 
with General Howe north of Albany. After Burgoyne's surrender, 
Williams arranged his corps into six divisions, each to be on duty one 
week at a time. This was to enable the men to attend to home 
affairs and their farms. He interested himself in behalf of those 
whose loyalty was doubtful. He sought to secure their return to their 
homes, under the assurance of protection. The original letter of 
General Gates is among the '• Williams Papers," on the subject in 
reply to one of his. It is dated " Camp Burrass, Sept. 29th, 1777." 
It is as follows: 

It does not remain with me properly to extend the time prescribed 



372 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITvS HISTORY. 

by my proclamation for the return of the Tories to the indulgent pro- 
tection of the government. But your letter shall immediately be 
sent to Esopus, to be laid before the Legislature of this state now 
sitting, and if they are pleased to grant a longer day, I shall, upon 
receiving their answer, immediately acquaint you herewith. I am, 
sir, your most obedient servant, Horatio Gates. 

AFTER THE WAR. 

General Williams continued his active, useful career to the close of 
his life. He was appointed Regent of the biiate University on its first 
board. He was an organizer of Washington Academy, the first north 
of Albany, to which he presented the ground and building. He was 
Judge of Washington County Court. He did more for the improve- 
ment and development of the northeastern section of the state than 
any others in its history. He died on July 22, 1806, aged fifty-three 
years and ten months. His descendants are about three hundred, 
composing some of the most prominent families in the state. 

The ' Williams Papers,' which are bound in folio volumes, especially 
his letters, testify to his noble and exalted character as well as to his 
usefulness in the service of his state and country. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

COUNTY CIVIL AND POLITICAL LISTS. 

LEGISLATORS. 

State Senators — 1777 — William Duer. 

1777-79 — John Williams; also served 1783-1795. 

1777-8=; — Alex. Webster. 

1778-S2— Ebenezer Russell; also 1784-8S, 1795-1803. 
— ^1779 — Elishama Tozer. 

1786-go — David Hopkins: also 1&09-13. 

1788-92 — Edward Savage: also 1S01-07. 

1793-1803 — Zina Hitchcock. 

1796-1802 — Ebenezer Clark. 

1796-98 — James Savage. 

1804-08 — Stephen 'I'horn ; also 1823-26. 



COUNTY CIVIL AND POLITICAL LISTvS. 373 

1S07-11 — John McLean; also 1836-37. 
1812-15 — Gerritt Wendell. 

Allen Hascall. 

1S17-21 — Roger Skinner. 
1 82 1 — David Shipherd. 
1823-25 — Melanchthon Wheeler. 
1825-29 — John Crary. 
1829-33 — John McLean, Jr. 
1834-36 — Isaac W. Bishop. 
1838-42 — Martin Lee. 
1844-48— Orville Clark. 
1852-54 — Daniel S. Wright. 
1856 — Justin A. Smith. 
1862 — Ralph Richards. 
1866 — James Gibson. 
1871 — Isaac V. Baker, Jr. 
1878 — Charles Hughes. 
1884— A. C. Comstock. 
1888— M. F. Collins. 
1892 — J. H. Derby. 

Washington County was represented in the senate by Hon. P'red D. Kilburn of 
Malone, N. Y., in 1894. In 1894 Washington County became part of the 2Sth 
Senatorial District under the Constitutional Amendment and has been represented 
by Hon. Edgar T. Brackett of Saratoga Springs since 1&95. 

Members OF Assembly — 1777-7S — John Barnes, Ebenezer Clark, John Rowan, 
Ebenezer Russell. 

1778-79— Elishama Tozer, Albert Baker (served to 1781) and David Hopkins, 
who served until 1786. 

1779-80 — John Grover, Noah Payne. 

1780 — Hamilton McCoUister, served until 1785, and Matthew McWhorter, wlio 
served until 1782. 

1781-82 — John Williams. 

1782-83 — Benjamin Baker, Jcseph McCracken, who served in 1786. 

1784-85 — Edward Savage, Adiel Sherwood.- 

1785-86 — Albert Baker. 

1786— Joseph McCracken, who also served in 1788-89. 

1786-87— Ichabod Parker, Peter B. Tearse, who served until 1790. 

1787 — Adam Martin, Edward Savage, who served from 1795 to 1802. 

1788-89— Alex. Webster. 

1789-91 — John Rowan, Zina Hitchcock, who served until 1794. 

1791 — Thomas Converse, Daniel Curtice, who served until 1794. 

1792 John Conger. 

1792-93 — David Hopkins, served 1795-96. 

1794 — William Whiteside, Benj. Colvin, Philip Smith, David Thomas. 

1796— Thomas Smith, served 1798. 



374 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

1796-97 — Timothy Leonard, A. L. Blanchard, G. G. Lansing, Andrew White, 
Daniel Mason, served 1798. 

1798— Reuben Pride, Melanchton Wheeler. 

1798-99- Charles Kane, Seth Crocker, Philip Smith, David Thomas. 
1800 — Micajah Pettit, Isaac Sargent, Benjamin Colvin. 
1800-1 — Gerrit G. Lansing, Timothy Leonard, William McAuley. 
1802— Micajah Pettit. 

1802-3 — Alex. Cowen, Jason Kellogg, John McLean, Isaac Sargent. 
1803-4 — David Austin, John McLean. 
1804 — Stephen Thorn, Dr. John McKinney. 

1 804-5 — Isa ac Har low, Jason Kellogg, Solomon Smith, James Sarbuck. 
1804-6— William TTvingston, John McLean. 
1806 — Isaac Sargent, Nathaniel Pitcher, Daniel Shipherd. 
1807 — Jason Kellogg, Peleg Bragg, John Gray. 
1807-9 — James Hill. 

1808 — Thomas Cornell, Lyman Hall, Henry Matteson, Gideon Taft. 
1808-9 -Alex. Livingston, Reuben Whallon. 
1808-10 — Roger Skinner. 
1810 — John Gale, Wm. Livingston. 

181 1— John Baker, John Richards, Isaac Sargent, Reuben Whallon, David 
Woods. 

1812— Lyman Hall, James Hill, John Kirkland, Alex. Livingston. 
1812-13 — John Beebe, Jason Kellogg, Francis McLean, M. Wheeler. 

1814— Paul Dennis, Samuel Gordon, John Savage, Charles Starbuck, John 
White. 

1814-15 — John Richards, Henry Matteson, John Gale, Nath. Pitcher, Isaac Sar- 
gent. 

1816— Michael Harris, John Reid, David Russell, James Stevenson, Roswell 
Weston. 

1816 17 -John Gale, Nath. Pitcher, David Woods. 

1816-18 — Isaac Sargent. 

1818 — Jason Kellogg, Alex. Livingston, John McLean, Jr. 

1819— William McFarland, John Gale, John Doty, Wm. K. Adams. 

1820 — David Austin, Peleg Bragg, James Hill, John Kirtland. 

1820-21 — Wadsworth Bell, James Mallory, John Moss, William Richards, John 
Baker. 

1822 — Silas D. Kellogg, James Tefft. 

1823 — Timothy Eddy, John King, Martin Lee, James McNaughton. 

1824 — John Crary .Silas D. Kellogg. . 

1824-25 — David Campbell, Ezra Smith. 

1825 -Lemuel Hastings, Samuel Stevens. 

1826— Hiram Cole, James Stevenson, Israel Williams, David Woods. 

1827— John McDonald, P. J. H. Myers, Samuel Stevens. 

1828 — Jonathan Mosher, Henry Thorn, Henry Whiteside. 

1829— John McDonald, Robert McNiel, Richard Sill. 

1830— David Russell, Robert Wilcox, David Sill. 

1831 — George W. Jermain, Henry Thorn, William Townsend. 



COUNTY CIVIL AND POLITICAL LISTS. 375 

1832— Isaac W. Bishop, John McDonald, James Stevenson. 
1833 — Walter Cornell, Charles Rogers, David Russell. 
1834— Charles F. Ingalls, Melanchthon Wheeler, James Wright. 
1835— Jonathan K. Horton, George McKie, Allen R. Moore. 
1836 — Aaron Barker, Alex. Robertson, Stephen L. Viele. 
1S37 — Joseph W. Richards, Charles Roberts. 
183S— Erastus D. Culver, Leonard Gibbs. 
1839— Salmon Axtell, Jesse S. Leigh. 
1840 — John H. Boyd, Anderson Simpson. 
1841 — Erastus D. Culver Reuben Skinner. 
1842 — James McKie, Jr., Daniel S. Wright. 
1843— Anson Bigelow, James W. Porter. 
1844— John Barker, John W. Proudfit. 
1845— James Rice, John Stevenson. 
1846— James S. Foster, L S. Viele. 
1847 — A. F. Hitchcock, Samuel McDonald. 
1848— Benjamin Crocker, Elisha A. Martin, 
1849 — Leroy Mowry, Alex Robertson. 
1850 — David Sill, Calvin Pease. 
185 1 — Thomas C Whiteside, James Farr. 
1852 — Elisha Billings, David Nelson. 
1853— Charles R. Engalls, Samuel S. Beaman. 
1854 — Ebenezer McMurray, George W. Thorn. 
1855 — James J . Lowrie, Justin A Smith 
1856 — John S. Crocker, Henry S. Northup. 
1857— Anson Ingraham, Henry W Beckwith. 
1858— Thad. H. Walker, Ralph Richards. 
1859— James M. Northup, James Savage. 
i86o^James Savage, Peletiah Jackway. 
1861— Peter Hill, Nicholas M. Catlin. . 
1862— George H. Taylor, Philip H. Neher. 
1863— Asa C. Tefft, Ervin Hopkins, Jr. 
1864— R. King Crocker, And. G. Meiklejohn. 
1865 — Sylvester E. Spoor. 
1865-0— Alex. Barkley. 
1866 — James C Rogers. 

1867— Thomas Shiland, Adolp. F. Hitchcock, 
1868 — David Underwood, Nath. Dailey. 
1869— William J. Perry. 
186^-71— Isaac V. Baker, Jr. 
1 870- '7 1 — Thomas J. Stevenson. 
1872— George W. L. ^mith. 
1872-73 — Edward W. Hollister. 

1873— Eleazer Jones died and William H. Tefft elected to fill the vacancy. 
1874-75 — Alex. B. Law, Emerson E. Davis. 
1876— Henry G. Burleigh. 
^877— Isaac V. Baker, Jr. 



370 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY 

1876-77 — Townsend J. Potter. 

1878 — Abraham Reynolds, George L. Terry. 

1879— A. Reynolds, G. L. Terry. 

1880 — G. L. Terry. Hiram Sisson. 

1881 — Hiram Sisson, J. E. Goodman. 

1882 — Robert Armstrong, Jr., George Northup. 

1883 — Robert Armstrong, Jr., George Northup. 

1884— D. M. Westfall, Charles K. Baker. 

1885 — George Scott, Charles K. Baker. 

1886— D. M. Westfall, J. H. Manville. 

1887— J. Warren Fort, J, H. Manville, 

1888— J, Warren Fort, O. W. Sheldon. 

1889-C. W. Larmon, W. H. Tefft. 

iSgo — C. W. Larman, J. A. Johnson. 

1891 — W. D. Stevenson, J. A. Johnson. 

1892 — W. D. Stevenson, William Reed. 

1893— W. R. Hobbie. 

1895 — W. D. Stevenson. 

1896.7-W. R. Hobbie. 

1898-9 — Charles R. Paris. 

iqoo -S. B. Irwin. 



THE COURTS. 

First J imcKs, Common Plk.-vs — 1773, Philip Schuyler ; 1777, William Duer; 1778. 
Ebenezer Russell; 1800, Ebenezer Clark; 1810, Anthony I. Blanchard; 1823, John P. 
Wendell; 1825, Roswell Weston; 1833, John Willard; 1836, John McLean^ Jr. 

County Judges — 1847, Martin Lees; 1852, James Gibson; 1856, A. Dallas Wait; 
i860, Oscar F. Thompson ; 1864, Joseph Potter; 1872, A. Dallas Wait; 1884, R. C. 
Betts; 1887, J. M. Whitman; 188S, T. A. Lillie; 1900, Charles R. Pari.s. 

Special County Judges — 1859, Oscar F. Thompson; i860, Henry Gibson; 1864, 
Royal C. Betts; 1871, Samuel Thomas ; 1875, C. L. Allen, Jr.; 1887, A. D. Arnold; 
1898, Frederick Bratt, and is still in office. 

.Surrogates -1 775, Patrick Smith; 1778, Ebenezer Clark; 1783, Edward Savage; 
1786, Melanchthon Woolsey; 1 787, Edward Savage ; i8o8, Isaac Sargent: iHio, Ed- 
ward Savage; 1 81 1, Isaac Sargent; 1812, Nathaniel Pitcher; 1813, Edward Savage ; 
1816, Henry C. Martindale; 1819, Calvin Smith; 1821, Leonard Gibbs; 1824, Samuel 
Standish, Jr.; 1832, John Willard; 1837, Alexander Robertson; 1841, John C. Parker; 
1845, Luther Wait; 1847, Joseph Bois; 1852, David A. Bois; 1856, Marinus Fairchild; 
i860, Urias G. Paris; 1868, James J.Lowrie; 1S72-78, Lonson Frazer; 1880, I. V. 
Baker; 1884, H. D. W. C. Hill; Grenville M. Ingalsbe, 1896, still in office. 

Special Surrogates- 1S57, John H. Boyd; i860, Leonard Wells ; 1866, Daniel M. 
Westfall; 1873-78, Leonard Fletcher; 1879, L. Fletcher; 1880, J. K. Larmon; 1882, C. 
L. McArthur; 1888, A. D. Arnold; 1889, C. G. Davis, still in office. 



COUNTY CIVIL AND POLITICAL LISTS. 877 

District AirdKNKVs — 1801, Anthony B. Blanchai'd, who served as assistant attor- 
ney-general for i7g6; 1803, John Russell; 1806, John Savage; 1811, Roger Skinner; 
1812, John Savage; 1813, Uavid Russell ; 1815, Jesse L. Billings; 1818, John Savage; 

1820, Jesse L. Billings; 1821, Henry C. Martindale; 1828, Leonard Gibbs; 1836, Cor- 
nelius L. Allen; 1843, Charles F. Ingalls; 1847, Henry B. Northup; 1851, Joseph 
Potter; 1857, Archibald L. McDougall ; 1862, Joseph Potter; 1863, A. Dallas Wait; 
1869, Royal C. Betts ; 1875, Samuel Thomas; 1878, Marinus Fairchild; 1881, Edgar 
Hull; 1896, James White; 1899, Charles O. Bratt. 

SHERIKFS-1772, Philip P. Lansingh; 1774, Jonathan Parker; 1777, Edward Savage ; 
1781, Joshua Conkey; 1785, Hamilton McColHster; 17S9, Peter B. Tearse ; 1793, -^"" 
drew White; 1796, Philip Smith; 179S, Abner Stone; 1802, Nathan Wilson ; 1806, 
David Woods; 1810, Simon Stevens, Jr.; i8rr, John Doty; 1813, Wadsworth Bull; 
1819, John Doty; 1821, John Gale; 1826, William McFarland; 1829, Warren F. 
Hitchcock; 1832, Darius Sherrill ; 1835, Benjamin Ferris; 1838, Philander C. Hitch- 
cock; 1841, Leonard Wells; 1844, Horace Stowell; 1S47, Daniel T. Payne; 1S50, Wil- 
liam A. Russell; 1853, James R. Gandall; 1856, Hugh R. Cowan; 1859, Oliflf Abell; 
1862, Benjamin F. McNitt; 1865, Dennis P Nye; 1868, James C Shaw; 1871, Orrin 
S. Hall; 1874, John Larman; 1877, George W. Baker; 1880, James Hill; 1883, David 
Johnson; 1886, George Marshall ; 1889, F. D. Hill; 1891, G.N. Finch; 1895, James 
W. Robertson; 1898-9, J. M. Hulett; part of 1899, Henry Welch; 1900, Bert Austin; 

County Clerks — 1773, Patrick Smith; 1777, Ebenezer Clarke ; 1785, John McCrea. 
1797, Saint John Honey wood; 1798, Gerrett L. Wendell; 1806, Daniel Shipherd; 

182 1, Matthew D. Danvers; 1826, Jesse S. Leigh; 1835, Edward Dodd; 1844. Henry 
Shipherd; 1853, Nathaniel B. Milliman; 1859, Philander C. Hitchcock; 1871, William 
H. Kincaid; 1877. Charles W. Taylor; 1888, Rodney Van W\)rmer; 1900, E. H. Sny- 
der. 

County Treasurers— -1807 1847, Ebenezer Russell, held by appointment of the 
supervisors; 1847, Calvin L. Parker; 1850, Edward Bulkley; 1856, John M. Barrett; 
1859, John King; 1862, Nelson G. Moor; 1 868, Samuel W. Crosby; 1871, Asahel R. 
Wing; 1874, James M. Northup; 1879, H.Davis Northup; 1885, John King; 1888, 
James O. LaVake ; 1893, W, H. Hughs; 1896, G. S. Clemons; 1899, Edwin B. Tem- 
ple. 



CHAPTER XXV. 
GAZETTEER OF TOWNS. 

TOWN OF KINGSBURY. 

The town of Kingsbury, is notable for two things — its historical in- 
terest and its steady and stable coinmercial growth. In primeval days 

L 47 J 



378 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the great Indian trails traversed this town. These trails led from the 
lakes to the Hudson river, and over them the warriors of the northern 
and southern tribes passed in their migrations back and forth on 
peaceful or warlike missions. Also the great military road from Fort 
Edward to Fort William Henry, passed through the ground which 
now constitutes the beautiful park in the thriving village of Sandy 
Hill, and this spot is notable because of the massacre of sixteen men 
by Indians in the early days, one only, a man named John Quacken- 
bush, being saved out of a band of seventeen teamsters and soldiers 
through the whim of a squaw. Weird and mystical legends and ad- 
ventures are associated with the early history of this part of Washing- 
ton County which tempt the pen of the histo'rian, but our theme in 
this chapter is more appropriately the civil and industrial record, 
especially as the romance and wars of the early days have been fully 
recounted in the earlier pages of this work. 

The town of Kingsbury lies on the west side of the county and 
about the middle from north to south, and touches great commercial 
arteries to an extent peculiar for the limits of a single town. On the 
west are the Hudson River and the Lake George branch of the Dela- 
ware & Hudson Railway while it is traversed on the eastern side by 
the main line of this railway and the Champlain Canal. The surface 
of the town is level and rolling, mainly, but there are some hills in 
the eastern part, and it is drained by Wood Creek, Halfway Creek 
and Bond Creek. 

The territory of this town is embraced in the Kingsbury patent, 
grranted to James Bradshaw, of New Milford, Conn., and 22 asso- 
ciates, May II, 1762. The first settler was this Bradshaw who came 
to the town in 1763; the second was Oliver Colvin, Sr., and the third 
Albert Baker, who is, and will always be commemorated in Baker 
Falls. But, althoug-h these were the first three settlers in the town 
there is no question but that the first white man to step upon its soil 
was Father Isaac Joques, a French Jesuit, who while on his way to 
Upper Canada, from Quebec, was captured by the Mohawks in 1642. 

Albert Baker settled at Sandy Hill and was soon afterwards joined 
by Michael Huffnogle. Other early settlers in the town were Samuel 
Brownson, Thoinas Grant, Benjamin Underbill, Solomon King, 
Joseph, Moses and William Smith, Henry Franklin, S. Dillingham, 
Ennis Graham., George Wray, John Moss, Timothy, Moses, Samuel 
and Gilbert Harris, John Phillips, Adam Wint, Samuel, Andrew and 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— KINGSBURY. 379 

Adiel Sherwood, Nehemiah Seelye, John Griffith, John Munroe, 
Leonard Decklyn, Amos McKeney, Asa Richardson, the Widow Jones 
with six sons from New Jersey. These sons were John, Jonathan, 
Dunham, David, Daniel and Solomon. One of these, David Jones, 
was the affianced of the hapless Jane McCrea. He with Adam Wint, 
Gilbert Harris and others fought for the British in the Revolutionary 
War. Several of these were with Burgoyne when he crossed the 
town in 1777. 

The town had been steadily growing during the first fifteen years 
of its life as a settlement, but the raid of Burgoyne and that of Carle- 
ton, in 1780. left it with only two houses standing and entirely depop- 
ulated. In 1 78 1 nearly all the fugitives of the preceding year had 
returned and the town again began to grow and new settlers came in. 

The house reputed to be Burgoyne's headquarters is still standing 
in the village of Sandy Hill, on the northeast corner of Burgoyne 
aveniie and Pine street. 

The town received state recognition on March 23, 1786. It grew 
steadily in population and agricultural improvement and has today 
the following unincorporated villages: Patten's Mills, Kingsbury 
Street, Smith's Basin, Adamsville, Dunham's Basin, Moss Street 
Vaughn's Corners and Langden's Corners. 

The supervisors of the town of Kingsbury from 1782 until 1900 
were: 

1782, Seth Sherwood; 1783-84, Albert Baker; 1785, Joseph Caldwell; 17S6, Seth 
Sherwood; 1787, Joseph Caldwell ; 17S8, Seth Sherwood; 1789-1793, SethAlden; 1794- 
95, Oliver Colvin ; 1796.97, SethAlden; 1798-1800, Asahel Hitchcock; 1801, Micajah 
Pettit; 1802, Oliver Colvin; 1803, Thomas Bradshaw ; 1804-ifeio, Nathaniel Pitcher; 
1812-1814, Felix Alden; 1815-1817, John Moss; 1818-1820, Hiram Cole; 1821-1823, 
Felix Alden; 1824-25, Hiram Cole; 1826-27, Felix Alden; 182S, Simeon Berry; 1829, 
Throop Barney; 1830, John Moss; 1831-1840, Josiah Hand; 1841-42, Luther Andrews; 
1843, Joseph Tefift; 1844-47, Josiah Hand; 1848-49, John Newman; 1850, Peter H. 
Cooper; 1851-52, Peter Holbrook; 1853, Peter H. Cooper; 1854, Orrin E. Harris; 
1855-1857, James McFarland; 1858-59, Charles Cole; i860, Hiram Kenyon; 1861, 
Charles Cole; 1862. Orson Richards; 1863, Guy W. Clark; 1864, Orson Richards; 
1865, Peter Holbrook; 1866, Eber Richards; 1869-70, S. H. Kenyon; 1871, Silas 
Ambler; 1872, W. H. Miller, (died during term) ; 1872-1874, L. H. Northup; 1875-1S77, 
George L. Terry; 1&78-1880,. Charles R. Paris; 1881, E. F. Hitchcock; 1882, L. H. 
Northup; 1883-84, George L. Terry; 1885-87, Grenville M. Ingalsbe ; 1888-1890, John 
H. Derby; 1891-1893, James H. Durkee; 1894-1897, J. E. Howland; 1898-1900, D. J. 
Sullivan. 



380 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The town clerks for the same period were: 

1782 and 1784 to 1795 inclusive, Samuel Harris; 1783, Fenner Palmer; 1796-7, 
Asabel Hitchcock; 1798-1801, Joseph Caldwell ; 1802-1810, Collins Hitchcock; 1811, 
James Nichols; 1812, Collins Hitchcock; 1813-14, Nathaniel Pitcher; 1815-1830, N. 
Barnum Hitchcock: 1834, Adolphus F. Hitchcock; 1839-1842, Asahel Hitchcock; 
1843, Allen Dewey; 1844, Dan vers Doubleday; 1 845-1847, Thomas Toole; 1848-1850, 
William Cronkhite; 1851, Charles D. Culver; 1852-54, William R. Locke; 1855-56, 
Orville C. Howard; 1857, John A. De Forest; 1858-9, Frederick C. Burdick; i86n-i, 
also 1863, Alfred A. Miller; 1862, Darius Mathewson; 1864, Daniel Monty; 1865, Wil- 
liam Hooker: 1866-1872, Charles H. Cronkhite; 1873, Charles H.Reed; 1874, John A. 
Cunningham; 1875-82, Marvin S. Cronkhite; 1883-4, A. D. Arnold; 18K5, Harry E. 
Tidmarsh; 1886, Edgar R. Locke; 1887-93, Plarper N. Rogers; 1894-96, W. E. 
Mosher; 1897-1900, Sheldon W. Mott. Arthur Carleton was clerk while Captain 
Mott was out with the Second New York Regiment during the Spanish war. 

vSANDY HILL. 

This enterprising- and prosperous village is not only the most im- 
portant part of the town of Kingsbury, but is one of the principal 
commercial centers of the county and one of the most notable places 
in northern New York. It is principally noted for its great industries, 
the histor)^ of which carries us back to the early settlement of this 
tract, when Albert Baker, the third settler in Kingsbury, located .on 
the spot where Hiram Allen's residence 'now stahds.'' " 

He came to vSandy Hill in 1768 with his wife and two 3'oung sons, 
Albert and Charles. He built a short wing dam by the fall which 
bears his name, and put up a saw mill. In the disastrous year of 1780 
his mill a:nd house were burned and he, with others, fled from the 
town. He was, however, among the first to return in 1881 and at 
once erected another mill and dwelling. In 1784 John Moss built a 
dam and saw mill above the village. In the same year Dr. Zina 
Hitchcock, Jonathan Harris, and others, came to the same locality and 
soon a little hamlet, the neucleus of Sandy Hill, appeared upon the 
present site. 

In 1793 Washington passed through Sandy Hill on his tour of in- 
spection of the northern lake military posts. 

The industrial life of Sandy Hill really began in 1844, although its 
earliest notable record is the Baker Mill. In 1844 Stephen Howland 
pitrchased the Baker Mills, which were then in ruins, and erected the 
first manilla paper mills in the United States. Allen Brothers mills 
now occupy this site. In 1845 the Wilbur and Witpin and the Tarter 
cK: Luther carriage factories were built. In 1846 Benjamin Ferris 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— KINGSBURY. 381 

put up a manilki paper mill which afterwards became the Waite wall 
paper mill. In i860 a shoddy mill was started, but was chang-ed to a 
straw printiiii^' j^aper mill. This mill was built and burned three times 
and went out of existence with its last fire. In 186S The Washington 
Mowing Machine works were built. In 1866 Rowland Clark & Com- 
panj-'s paper mill was built, now the Union Bag and Paper Company. 
In 1S60 the Baker Falls Iron and Machine Works were built. These 
are now the Sandy Hill Iron and Brass Works. In 1872 Orsen Rich- 
ards built two saw mills, known as the upper and lower saw mills. 

The principal industries of Sandy Hill at present are: The Union 
Bag & Paper Company, Allen Brothers Company, the Standard Wall 
Paper Company, The Sandy Hill Iron & Brass Works, The Friction 
Pulley & Machine Works, Hibbard Bros. Machine Works, the Star 
Suction Washer Company, the Griffin Lumber Company and the Ken- 
yon Lumber Company. 

The facilities for manufacturing at Sandy Hill are phenominal as 
the fall of the Hudson at this point is seventy feet, affording an almost 
inexhaustible power. 

In 1869 the Glens Falls Railroad was opened through Sandy Hill 
toward the construction of which Sandy Hill contributed $25,000. In 
1873 the present fine court house was erected and the village became 
the western county seat. The old coiirt house now stands upon the 
north side of Willow street and is used as a flour and feed store. 

The Sandy Hill post office w'as opened in 1798. Roswell Weston 
\vas the first postmaster. Major John Dwyer is the present incum- 
bent and the postoffice is now rated second class and does a very large 
business. 

Sandy Hill was made a village on March 9, 1810, by the provisions 
of chapter 40 of the state laws of that year, and comprised, at that 
time, all of what, was known as lot No. 93. The boundaries of the 
village were extended by an act of March 21, 1856, and the incorpora- 
tion of the community was fully completed in 1875, under the provi- 
sions of chapter 291 of the laws of 1870. 

There are no village records earlier than 1856. F'ollowing is a list 
of the village presidents commencing with that date : 

1856 and 1857, Orson Richards; 1858, J. W. Finch; 1859, Nelson W. Wait; i860, 
Joseph McFarland; 1861, M. F. Cronkhite; 1862 and 1863, Darius Mathewson; 1864, 
Hiram Kenyon; 1865, Joseph McFarland; 1866, E. H. Crocker; 1867-8 g and 1870, 
Joseph McFarland; 1871, Amariah Holbrook; 1872, Hiram Kenyon; 1873, F. W. 



382 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Crocker; 1874, Guy W. Clark; 1875, Loren Allen; 1876, Elisha Baker; 1877-8-9-1880, 
Lyman H. Northup; 1S80-1, James P. Buck; 1881-2 and 1882-3, Jo^^ H. Derby; 
1883-4, Eber Richards; 1884-5-6, Silas Doolittle; 1886-7, John J. Cunningham; 1887-8, 
L. H. Northup; 1888-9-90, Daniel M. Monty; 1890-1, Mitchell Potvin; 1891-2, J. E. 
Rowland; 1892-3-4, David Filkins; 1894-5-6, Charles R. Paris; 1896 7-8-9, David Fil- 
kins; 1899-1900, Winfield A. Huppuch; 1900-1901, William J. Blake. 

The village clerks for same period have been : 

1856, J. C. Green, (the first village clerk;) 1857, M. F. Cronkhite; 1858, George B. 
Culver; 1859-60, A. A. Miller; 1860-61-62-63, R. B. Perry; 1864, J. De Forest; 1865-66, 
D. E. Parks; 1867, Charles E. Noble; 1868-69-70-71-72, J. D. Teller; 1872 73, Robert 
S. Coleman; 1874 to 1894, Grenville M. Ingalsbee. D. J. Sullivan elected 1894 and 
still in oflfice. 

Sandy Hill is widely known for its schools and churches as well as 
for its splendid industrial enterprises and progressive business men. 

The Presbyterian church in this village was organized in 1803 by 
Rev. Lebbens Armstrong, at the house of Captain William Smith, 
which stood about four miles north of the village. The congregation 
worshipped in the court house until they erected their first church 
building in 1826. This building was replaced by a handsome new 
edifice in 1895. Rev. Charles D. Kellogg, D. D., is the present pas- 
tor. 

The Methodist Episcopal church of Sandy Hill was organized in 
1825, but they did not erect a church edifice until 1840. Rev. L. D. 
Cook is the present pastor. 

About the year 1830 and during the pastorate of Rev. John Kelly, 
Saint Mary's Catholic church was organized. It was at first known 
as Christ's church, but the name was subsequently changed to St. 
Mary's. This church increased wonderfully in strength and in 1872 
St. Paul's church was organized by the French members, under the 
charge of Rev. G. Huberdault. The present pastor of St. Paul's 
is Rev. Eugene Rey. St. Mar5'''s congregation has* now under con- 
templation the erection of a splendid church edifice to cost $50,000, 
and the project will undoubtedly be consummated at an early date. 

The Sandy Hill Baptist church was organized in April, 1840, and 
Rev. J. B. Murphy was the first pastor. Their present fine church 
building was erected in 1872 at a cost of $57,000. Rev. E. R. Sawyer 
D. D., is the present pastor. 

The Advent Christian church was organized in 1859 by Rev. Joseph 
Parry. Their church building was erected in i860. The present 
pastor is Rev. O. W. Higley. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 383 

Sandy Hill has excellent school buildings and the status of the 
schools is high. The Union Free School was opened in 1869 with 
Professor William McLaren as principal. Miss Frances A. Tefft is 
the present principal. 

Sandy Hill is adequately supplied with banking facilities through 
its two banks, The National Bank of Sandy Hill, capital $50,000, and 
The Peoples National Bank, capital $50,000. 

The First National Bank was organized in January, 1864. In Jan- 
uary, 1883, the charter having expired by limitation the bank was re- 
organized as the National Bank of Sandy Hill. 

The People's National Bank was organized in September. 1884. 

The societies of Sandy Hill are quite numerous and influential. 
The principal ones are : 

Sandy Hill Lodge, No. 372. F. & A. M. 

Kingsbury Lodge, No. 203, A. O. U. W. 

Catholic Mutual Benefit Association. 

Royal Arcanum, Sandy Hill Council, No. 587. 

Royal Templars of Temperance. 

Improved Order of Red Men, Ongwehoneve Tribe, No. 298. 

Sandy Hill Chapter No. 189, R. A. M. 

The Iroquois Club. 

Knights of Columbus, Sandy Hill Council No. 296. 

Order of Eastern Star. 

Crown Star Chapter No. 143, Knights of Maccabees. 

William M. Collin Post No. 587. 

Sons of Veterans, Gen. James C. Rogers' Camp, No. 72. 

The fire department comprises the C. R. Paris Hose Company No. 
I, the J. W. Wait Hose Company No. 2, and Union Hose Company 
No. 3. 

TOWN OF SALEM. 

A year after the English and Colonials had passed through Fort 
Edward on their way to strike a last blow at the French supremacy 
in Canada, and more than sixteen years before the eastern banks of 
the Hudson resounded with the echoes of Burgoyne's advancing can- 
non, two pioneers from New England threaded their way through 
the westward forest and coming upon the ground where Salem now 
lies, decided to build there their future homes. 

It is not surprising that they should have been attracted by this 
region. The sunny hills and rich flats, watered by clear brooks flow- 



384 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ing- toward the south and west to swell the current of the Battenkill; 
the kindly and inviting- aspect of the fertile country-side, even when 
rank with the tangle of the primeval forest, must have brought these 
men to realize gratefully that they had found a place where nature 
yielded her richest fruits and fairest charms. These two men, James 
Turner and Joshua Conkey, probably remained during the summer of 
1 761 to clear the land about their newly chosen homes, and returned 
for the winter months to their families in Pelham, Mass. The next 
spring they were accompanied on their journey to the westward by 
Hamilton McCollister, but did not bring their families and household 
equipment with them until the third year, 1764. Wagons of course 
were out of the question in those days to the migrating frontiersman 
and these hardy settlers had to be content to carry with them only 
such things as could be packed upon the backs of their horses. The 
first dwelling — that ultimately occupied by the Turner family — 
was a rough log-cabin without any floor but the cold earth and in 
which the most prominent article of furniture was a table formed 
from the stump of a tree, the roots of which still remained in the 
ground and the top of which had been made as level as possible with 
the implements at hand. This cabin was built upon the ground where 
the Ondawa House now stands and Turner chose for his land that 
lying to the west of this site, McCollister going to the east and Con- 
key still further in the same direction up the creek. 

If Turner and Conkey built their cabin and remained to fit the land 
for farming on their first visit in 1761, then they were the first per- 
manent settlers in Washington County. In this same year Philip 
Skene brought thirty families, under his employ, to the head of Lake 
Champlain, and set them to clearing the ground where Whitehall now 
stands. The 21st of July of this year is the date of a patent compris- 
ing the central parts of the present townships of Cambridge and 
White Creek, but it is not certain that any families moved into this 
district until the next year. More than a score of years before this, 
however, forts and fortified settlements had unquestionably been 
established on the left shore of the Hudson. The destruction and 
abandonment of these have been fully described in the early chapters 
of the general county history, from which it will be seen that they were 
not so inuch settlements as they were military outposts; at all events 
they were not permanent. If then we allow to Salem the primacy of 
settlement it must be with some reservations; still neither Skene's 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 385 

settlers nor those who went to live upon the lands included in the 
Cambridge patent were upon the ground of their future homes as 
early in the year as were Turner and Conkey, and even if these two 
men did not build their cabin in the year of their first expedition they 
evidently intended from the first to make their homes where Salem 
now stands, and so we may sa}^ that at least they were the first in the 
county to lay their hands to the task of establishing a colony that 
should turn out to be permanent. 

They obtained in 1764 from the governor and council, a patent of 
25,000 acres, which covers a large part of the present town, and as 
the crown forbade the granting of more than a thousand acres to any- 
one person they enlisted their fellow townsmen of Pelham in the 
enterprise and the names of twenty-five of the inhabitants of Pelham 
and vicinity appeared upon the grant.' It was not at that time a 
difficult matter for those giving convincing evidence of intention to 
settle in an unoccupied distrjpt to obtain a patent, but the Colonial 
authorities were unprincipled in their dealings wuth the settlers and 
were sure to exercise their cunning to the end of leaving some defect 
in the title or of retaining for themselves some rights which to the 
prospective patentees seem.ed trifling enough, until, in future years, 
they were brought to realize their true magnitude. In this case the 
patentees were actually forced to buy up the authorities with a bribe 
of one-half the grant agreed upon, before they came into possession 
of the patent. The men who profited by this venality were Oliver De 
Lancy and one or two of his henchmen within the inner circle of gov- 
ernmental scheming at New York. When these families from Pel- 
ham were established in the new settlement, they named it "White 
Creek," from the whiteness of the bed of the stream which ran 
through it, as well as from the admirable clearness of the water, a 
marked contrast to the stream coming from the north, which they 
called " Black Creek." 

One of the first events to arouse the interest of the inhabitants of 
White Creek was the holding of divine service in the dwelling of Mr. 
Turner one vSunday in the summer of 1765. The service was con- 
ducted by Dr. Thomas Clark, a Scotch clergyman who for more than 
a decade had been established in the north of Ireland and who had, 

' Frequently fictitious names were used in cases of this kind and it is not definitely known 
whether all the twentv-five names on the Turner patent were g-enuine or not. . . 

[48 J 



386 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the summer before, come to the new world, accompanied by some 
three hundred of his parishioners. This was the first divine service 
ever held in the new settlement and probably the first in New York 
state north of Albany. The settlers of White Creek as well as some 
from more remote districts came eagerly to hear the word of God from 
the lips of the reverend stranger; and they received not only spiritual 
edification from his holy utterances but a considerable temporal 
quickening when they learned that he was searching, in behalf of his 
numerous flock, for a desirable place for them to settle. He expressed 
himself as much pleased with the outlook for prospective settlers in 
the vicinity and when told of the half-interest in the patent, held by 
DeLancy and his friends, he thought favorably of attempting a nego- 
tiation by which his company would come into possession of the De 
Lancy interest in the grants. 

The altogether unusual features connected with the emigration to 
America of this Scotch-Irish colony which, heralded by Dr. Clark, 
advanced to White Creek, and there settled, make it well worth our 
while to go back a few years to trace its history. 

The eighteenth century saw many splits and schisms among the 
Presbyterians of Scotland as well as among their brothers who emi- 
grated to the north of Ireland.' It is as diificult to gain a fair concep- 
tion of the various matters over which they quarreled and separated, 
as it is to understand the unflinching resolution with which they held 
to and suffered for their several creeds. Amongst numerous sources 
of trouble was a pronounced variance of opinion respecting the pro- 
vince of the civil magistrate in matters of religion. This so-called 
*' New Light "' controversy was widely prevalent in Scotland for many 
years and of course extended to the Presbyterians in Ireland as well. 
In Monaghan county about two hundred families became so dissatis- 
fied with the preachings of their ministers that they petitioned ' The 
Associate Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow to send to them a spiritual 



■ The Presbyterians in the north of Ireland were descendants of the Scotch covenanters who 
went thither to escape persecution for having disowned the unprincipled Charles II, as their 
lawful sovereign; also for denying the right of James, Duke of York, to the succession. 

''■ In 1733 there was a formidable secession from the Church of Scotland occasioned by an Act 
of Assembly which removed all hope from the congregations of electing their own ministers. 
These secessionists in 1747, split into -'Burgers" and "Anti-Burgers," owing to differences 
among them concerning the oath taken by burgesses. In 1820 these factions joined interests and 
formed "The United Secession Church" which in 1847 united with a large part of "The Relief 
Church " and has since been known as "The United Presbvterian Church." 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 387 

adviser in whose teaching's they might find the light and the truth. 
In compliance with this request the Presbytery in 1748 sent out Dr. 
Clark, then a young licentiate, to minister to the needs of the peti- 
tioners in Monaghan County. His first preaching was at Ballybay, 
but his labors extended over a considerable field and he held frequent 
services in the neigboring villages. In 1751 his followers at Ballybay 
organized as a church and although Dr. Clark had other urgent offers 
for his services, he accepted in that year the call from the people of 
Ballybay and was installed as their pastor on Jul}'- 23d. 

Dr. Clark, at this time barely thirty years old, had completed his 
collegiate studies at the University of Glasgow and after graduation, 
had pursued the study of medicine and received the degree of M. D. 
at the same institution. For two years before his connection with the 
Associate Burgher Presbytery, he was fighting in the king's army 
against the pretender, Charles Edward, whose cause perished on the 
field of Culloden Moor; so that it is possible to trace the elements of 
character which won him such high esteem, to his soldierly ideals, 
scientific training and religious zeal. His great popularity at Ballybay 
and the rapid growth of the newly established church, under his pas- 
torship, excited the bitterest jealousy among the people of the other 
Preybyterian church of the town, and prompted them to go to any 
length to rid the community of the man who was causing their down- 
fall and humiliation. It was known that the young divine would not 
acknowledge the king as head of the church and also that he refused 
to follow the custom of taking oath in court b}' kissing the Gospels. 
They believed that these were sufficient grounds upon which to secure 
his conviction for disloyalty and eagerly awaited an opportunity to 
seize him when he should be away from Ballybay and at a time when 
they would not be overpowered by his friends. The arrest finally 
took place January 23d, 1754, at New Bliss, a neighboring village, 
where Dr. Clark was acting as moderator to a call for a pastor. Sev- 
eral of the elders and members of the rival church went to New Bliss 
and arrested their enemy just as he had closed his sermon. Dr. Clark 
did not resist, and admonished those present not to cause disturbance 
and riot by attempting his rescue. That night he was kept imder a 
strong guard in a tavern and on the following day he was taken by 
his captors fourteen miles to Monaghan jail. 

When the judges, more than ten weeks later, examined the warrant 
upon which he was committed, they found it defective and ordered 



388 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

his release, but he was again thrown into prison on a new writ, and 
probably was not released the second time until well into the sum- 
mer. During his imprisonment he frequently addressed affectionate 
letters to his congregation and during the warm months many of his 
loving flock would travel the long road to Monaghan and crowd about 
him in the gloomy jail to hear his words of holy instruction. Mothers 
brought their children thence to be baptized, and one young couple 
who afterward journeyed with him to America came there to be mar- 
ried. 

His final acquittal may have been due to the evident triviality of 
the charges, in view of the loyal services he had rendered in fighting 
his king's battles; or perhaps to the fact that it was manifest from the 
first that his persecutors were seeking his conviction from motives of 
factional jealousy, and not on account of the charges set forth in the 
writ 

However zealous and inspired his work among the people of Bally- 
bay may have been, it is easy to see that his life there must have been 
far from a happy one, and when in 1762 there came upon him the 
great grief of his wife's death, it is small wonder that he longed to get 
away from the surroundings which so constantly recalled and intensi- 
fied his sorrow. There was at this time a considerable emigration to 
America, both from Scotland and Ireland, and the letters sent back 
from those who had gone over seas to seek freedom and fortune, des- 
cribed the New World in such glowing terms as to incline those in the 
Mother Coimtry strongly toward abandoning the oppression and per- 
secution of their native land for the limitless resources and religious 
freedom lying open to them beyond the Atlantic. The fame of Dr. 
Claik's heroic work had been carried into the western continent and 
about this time he received two urgent calls to go to America — one 
from Albany and one from a congregation in Rhode Island. The 
Presbytery, when apprised of these calls, appointed him to labor for 
one year in America, but it does not appear that he agreed to return, 
and it is highly probable that he intended from the first to settle 
there. No greater tribute could possibly be made to the love and 
devotion in which he was held by his congregation than the fact that 
about three hundred of them decided to accompany him when it was 
made known that he proposed to leave Ireland for the New World. 
The company sailed from Newry, May i6th, 1764, and landed safely 
in New York on the 28th of the following July. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 389 

Before setting out, Dr. Clark had been in correspondence with the 
Hon. Robert Carter of Columbia College, New York City, with res- 
pect to obtaining a grant of land for the emigrants who were desirous 
of accompanying him. When he reached New York he found that 
there was, on the shores of Lake George, an unoccupied tract, which, 
although it had not yet been surveyed, might to all intents and pur- 
poses, be considered as good as theirs. They could not, however, 
move on to the land and build their cabins until it had been apportioned 
into lots; this would necessitate a considerable wait, and while in 
New York a number of families, discouraged at the prospect of long- 
delay, fell into the hands of a land agent who offered them favorable 
conditions to go south, and separating from the main body of the 
company, established themselves in Cedar Springs and Long Cane, S. 
C. Dr. Clark thought it desirable to spend the time which should 
elapse until they should be free to occupy their grant, at a .place as 
near as possible to their intended homes; he accordingly moved up 
the Hudson with the main body of his Colonists as far as Stillwater. 
For the most part they had little money and it became necessary for 
them to seek emplo3mient among the people of Stillwater for the win- 
ter. The few who went up to investigate the Lake George tract came 
back with rather unfavorable accounts of the severity of the winter, 
the forbidding aspect of the motmtains, and the rocky character of 
the land. Dr. Clark and his company decided that it would be advis- 
able to look about for a more congenial region, and so he started out 
on a tour of investigation through the surrounding country. It was 
while on this journey that he came into the settlement of White Creek 
and held service in the cabin of James Turner. 

Dr. Clark spent the summer of 1765 traveling on horseback from 
one settlement to another, investigating the conditions important to a 
company of farming people and learning Mdiat he could of the accessi- 
bility of the patents. The De Lancy half of the Turner patent seemed 
to him to be better than any other he had come upon £ind so, late in 
August he went to New York City and began negotiations to secure 
it for his colony. The conditions under which Dr. Clark's followers 
obtained the land were that after the first five years they should pay a 
yearly rent of one shilling per acre; they therefore could have a fair 
period to clear their land and get it into good condition for farming 
before any rent would be exacted of them. 

Early in the spring of 1766 the men of his company journeyed thirty 



390 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

miles through the forest to their new homes where they cleared and 
burned ' over as much land as possible and planted corn. In midsum- 
mer they went back to Stillwater where they helped with the hayings 
and harvesting and returned in the autumn to gather in their own 
crop and build their cabins. It is noteworthy that from the first these 
people had been conscious of the fact that they were a clmrch organi- 
zation in search of a new home and not a mere band of adventurous 
colonizers. Immediately on reaching White Creek they had put up a 
good-sized cabin as a home for their pastor in the future (for the time 
being it was their general headquarters) and during that busy sum- 
mer, when it would seem that each man had more work than could be 
well accomplished, on his own lot, there were specified days upon 
which all came together and joined in the work of building a meeting 
house so that in the following spring when their families should arrive 
there might be a suitable place to hold public worship. 

This was the first structure of the kind in the county and in fact in 
all the region north of Albany to the Canada line. As the men had 
no teams the logs had to be dragged into place by hand, but in spite 
of these difficulties they made their future house of worship forty feet 
in length and of generous proportions. This crude edifice had no 
floor, the crevices between the logs were filled with clay, the roof was 
of black-ash bark and the seats were rough benches made from logs 
split in half and placed on blocks of wood. The site of this first 
church was a few rods south of the " Old Meeting House " which now 
stands at the top of the hill south of the new mill. The road then 
ran at the foot of the hill on tlie opposite side of the meeting house 
from where it now passes and across this road they also built in the 
summer of 1766 a school-house. 

Some of the families who had crossed the water with Dr. Clark did 
not move up the next spring to White Creek but remained in Still- 
water, where they thrived and where at the present time their descen- 
dants are among the most prominent people. The main body, how- 
ever, passed out into the wilder region and occupied the cabins that 
had been prepared for them the summer before. Before the end of 
May enough were there so that divine worship in the new meeting 
house was commenced. There were none of the formalities of organ- 



' The Indians in this vicinity had been in the habit of burning over the land yearly so that it 
was comparatively free frtm underbrush. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 391 

izing' a church, no admission of members or election of trustees. The 
company was already a perfectly org-anized religious society, with its 
pastor, its elders, its members, all regularly constituted. Dr. Clark 
had never resigned nor had the Presbytery released him from his pas- 
toral charge over these people. Their church membership had never 
been interrupted. They took no letters of dismission to join another 
church. He was their pastor; they were his flock. The same rela- 
tions existed between them in America as in Ireland. We doubt if 
any other religious society has been transferred from the Old to the 
New World in a manner so regular and orderly and with so little to 
vitiate its title to continuous identitv. 

Dr. Clark's colony came across the ocean and arrived in Salem. The 
preaching of the Word on the Sabbath and the administration of the 
Sacraments were regularly continued during the three years of their 
pilgrimage with only such occasional interruptions as were at times 
unavoidable. Thus they came into this town a fully and perfectly 
organized church. 

Previous to the arrival of the people from Ballybay there were only 
three families (those of James Turner, Joshua Conkey and David 
Webb) regularly settled at White Creek. Hamilton McCollister, then 
unmarried, was also there but had not yet built a cabin. During the 
succeeding years some twenty or more families, from the Massachu- 
setts towns of Pelham, Colerain, Sturbridge and vicinity, followed 
Turner and his friends to the new settlement and established their 
homes on the many vacant lots of the Turner grant. The population 
was also swelled by the arrival of a number of other families from the 
Monaghan district ; for Dr. Clark, realizing that the five years during 
which the land could be held free of charge would terminate in 1770, 
and that every unoccupied acre would, after that time, become a pub- 
lic burden, had made great efforts to induce his friends in Scotland 
and Ireland to join him. One of the congregation made the long 
journey to the Mother Country to describe the many attractions of 
the new-found home and by virtue of this messenger and much cor- 
respondence, carried on by Dr. Clark, the members of the colony 
were considerably increased. 

It might be supposed that the half of the Turner patent retained 
by De Lancy and conveyed by him to Dr. Clark would be marked off 
by a well defined boundary from the half held by the original paten- 
tees. If this had been the case the Scotch-Irish contingent would 



392 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

have been on one side of the town and the New England contingent 
on the other. No such arrangement as this, however, took place ; the 
three hundred and four plots of eighty-eight ' acres each into which 
the land had Ijeen surveyed, were divided by lot between the two par- 
ties, so that the people from Ballybay and those from Pelham were 
intermingled all over the town. 

When the patent was surveyed a large lot, covered with excellent 
pine timber, had been reserved for the common benefit, and when 
the division was made between the two colonies, each further reserved 
three lots for religious purposes, from which last fact it is evident 
that, although both factions were Presbyterian, each from the outset 
designed to have its own church and minister. The settlers from 
New England at first very generally worshipped with Dr. Clark's 
congregation, but as early as 1769,- they organized a separate church 
with fifty-two members, and five years later began 'to erect a house of 
worshijD for themselves. 

It does not appear that there was any open antagonism between the 
two companies, but rather that the joining of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon 
elements in the settlement of vSalem tended to produce a health}^ 
rivalry and to stimulate the early development of the place. An illus- 
tration of the persistency with which each refused to cede ascendency 
to the other, is to be found in the fact that for a long time the name 
of the place was a matter of contention. Dr. Clark had had blank 
deeds printed, after completing his negotiations with De Lancy in 
New York, in order that the settlers in his party might have the land 
conveyed to them in fitting legal form. Upon these deeds the name 
of the settlement appeared as New Perth. Dr. Clark had probably 
fancied that the three families then settled in the place would offer no 
opposition to a name agreeable to his much more numerous.fbody of 
emigrants, and had named the embryo town after the ancient capitol 
of Scotland. But the Massachusetts settlers, who were of English 
parentage, were quite content to have the place known as White 
Creek and had no mind to allow their new home to go by a name so 
redolent of thistles and heather; as a consequence each party tena- 
ciously clung to its chosen name and refused to acknowledge the 
other. 



' On account of the irregularity of the boundary lines of that patent there were some frac- 
tional lots and some of more than 88 acres. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 393 

On March 20, 1774, this settlement having become the most popu- 
lous in the county, was erected into a township and called New Perth 
which name continued as its legal designation until the close of the 
Revolutionary War. In 1779 an act was passed directing the holding 
of courts in Charlotte County, but there is no record of any such court 
until 1786. On February 5th, 1787, an act was passed re-affirming 
the previous act and directing that the county courts should be held 
at "Salem." This was the first recorded use of the name now 
adopted, and it was probably taken from the name of a fort (Fort 
Salem) which, as we shall presently see, was erected at the time of 
Burgoyne's invasion, on the site of the present " Brick Church." The 
name of the fort was probably chosen by the New England element 
in the settlement in honor of the Massachusetts town of that name, so 
that although the Scotch-Irish element enjo3^ed a temporary triumph,, 
the New Englanders in the end were successful in giving a. name tO' 
the place. In the following year a state law was passed defining all 
the county boundaries and dividing the counties into towns. "Salem"' 
was the first on the list of the towns so recognized in Charlotte Coun- 
ty, so that from that year forth no question was raised concerning the- 
name of the town which is the subject of this sketch. 

The people of Dr. Clark's congregation found their log church, des- 
pite the elaborate and painstaking work which they had lavished upon 
its construction, a very uncomfortable place to listen to a two hour 
sermon twice every Sunday. Whenever the weather permitted the 
services were held near a spring on the opposite side of the road 
where there was an attractive open space left by the felling of the 
trees which had been used in the construction of the building. Here 
the preacher stood beneath a small tent open upon one side and shad- 
ing him from the sun, with the Bible and Psalm Book placed upon a 
stand covered with white cloth, and with the audience clustered upon 
the rising ground in front of him, sitting upon the shelving ledges of 
rock and the stumps of trees. But in winter and on rainy Sundays in 
summer they were forced by necessity to worship in the old log 
church, so within a few years they decided upon a new building which 
was completed in 1770. This was looked upon through all the sur- 
rounding country as a triumph of architecture and workmanship. It 
was the first framed building in the vicinity, and with the exception 
of two large houses at Fort Edward, used as barracks and storehouse,, 

[49 J 



394 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

it was the first framed structure in the county. This building is still 
standing; it is at the top of the hill on the west side of South Main 
street and is pointed out to strangers as "The Old Meeting House." 

In the latter part of October, 1771, the people of New Perth were 
called upon to offer hospitable protection to some nine families whose 
homes had been raided by a gang of Green Mountain Boys and who 
had fled thither to seek shelter. The story of Charles Hutchinson, 
formerly a corporal in Colonel Montgomery's Highland regiment, will 
illustrate what happened to all the families thus rendered homeless. 
Hutchinson said that while he was quietly at work in the field a gang 
of nine men, among whom were to be recognized Ethan Allen, Re- 
member Baker and Robert Cochran, came up and began demolishing 
his house. When he asked them to desist the}' declared that they had 
decided to burn his house as an offering to the gods and proceeded to 
suit the action to the word by kindling fires under the logs they had 
torn down. Allen and Baker held clubs over poor Hutchinson's head 
and admoni.shed him forcefully to get out of the vicinity at once; if 
he ever dared come back again he might look for even worse treat- 
ment than it was then their pleasure to administer to him and his 
household. It was of no use to remonstrate so he fled to Salem. 

This affair was an episode in the great controversy, described at 
some length in the earlier pages of this work, over the New Hamp- 
shire grants. The trouble arose from the unfixed condition of the 
boundary between New York and New Hampshire (as yet Vermont 
did not exist) and the matter at once becomes clear when it is explained 
that the disi3uted territory had been given out in grants by the gover- 
nors of both states. This famous dispute began in 1749 when Gover- 
nor Wentworth of New Hampshire wrote Governor Clinton of New 
York asking " where his government began," and raged for over forty 
)xars. Salem and all the eastern part of Washington County was in- 
volved in the embroglio but she was always true to New York. In 
the end those possessing the patents of New Hampshire held their 
ground, but becoming involved with New Hampshire itself, formed a 
separate state. When in 1791 Vermont was admitted into the Union 
as a state, the hatchet was at last buried. 

The life at New Perth in the few years which elapsed between its 
settlement and the outbreak of the Revolution was, aside from the 
few incidents which have been mentioned, very free from important 
happenings. Dr. Clark every year collected his one thousand five 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 395 

hundred dollars rent and rode on horseback with it two hundred miles 
to New York. He was untiring in his efforts to promote in every- 
way the welfare of the community. *' He was minister, doctor and 
real estate manager all in one."' But at length the secular business 
and especially the collecting of rents seems to have involved him in 
some trouble and in the suminer of 1782 he relinquished his charge. 
The last ten years of his life (1786-92) were spent as pastor over the 
part of the original compan}' from Ballybay which had settled at 
Cedar Spring and Long Cane in South Carolina. 

The news of Lexington and the daring stand taken by the revolted 
colonies, although it must have produced a profound impression on 
the people of New Perth, did not affect the routine of their daily lives 
more than to prompt military preparations and to bring those capable 
of bearing arms to a regular attendance at drill. But when Ethan 
Allen, the Green Mountain Boy, wdiose very name struck terror to 
the hearts of the devout colonists of New Perth, had with Benedict 
Arnold, in May, 1775, taken possession of Fort Ticonderoga "in the 
name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress " — neither 
of which authorities had, up to that time, seemed to inspire him with 
any especial awe — the people of Charlotte County, not to be outdone 
in promoting the cause of liberty, by their old enemies of the New 
Hampshire grants, speedily enlisted in the patriot cause and setting 
their old rivalries aside, organized a county committee and formed a 
regiment of militia. 

Prominent in this movement was Dr. John Williams, a young phy- 
sician who had emigrated from England and settled at New Perth in 
1773. He was admitted to a seat in the Provincial Congress, on pre- 
senting a certificate of fourteen men from White Creek, Camden and 
the towns to the east, and organized a regiment of militiamen whO' 
mingled occasional drilling with the labors of their farms. On the 
2nd of July, 1777, General St. Clair, then at Fort Ticonderoga await- 
ing an attack from the English who were advancing southward under 
Biirgoyne, wrote to Colonel Williams directing him to march to his 
assistance and adding: "If I had only your people here I would 
laugh at all the enemy could do." Colonel Williams immediately 
started north wnth his regiment — regiment by name but consisting, so- 
far as records show, of only three companies, of which the largest 

' From a paper by Rev. James G. Robertson. 



396 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

(that from New Perth, commanded by Captain Charles Hutchinson, 
who had been mobbed by Ethan Allen) — numbered but fifty-two men. 

But Ticonderoga fell before Colonel Williams reached there, 
and then spread through the whole countryside the terrible news that 
General Burgoyne was advancing toward the Hudson valley, spread- 
ing desolation in his path and openly countenancing the atrocious 
depredations of the hordes of Indians whom the English ministry had 
seen fit to allow him to marshal with his British and Hessian forces. 
The people of New Perth at once set to work to strengthen them- 
selves against the impending peril by fitting up a fort, which they 
named Fort Salem. 

The New England element at New Perth had, in 1774, begun to 
erect for themseles a house of worship which they began on plans 
similar to those adopted by Dr. Clark's parishioners in their famous 
framed meeting house. . This structure was on the site of the present 
" Brick Church " and though, at the time of which we are writing, it 
was not yet fully completed. It had, nevertheless, been used repeat- 
edly as a house of worship by the Presbyterians of the New England 
colony. It was this incompleted church that served the people of 
New Perth as their fortress. The people of the Scotch-Irish colony 
did their part by tearing up their original log church and setting up 
the logs thereof in a stockade around the frame structure of the New 
Englanders. This primitive fort was provisioned, equipped with 
ovens, garrisoned and in every way fitted up to serve as a retreat and 
place of safety to the people, in case their town should be attacked by 
the enemy. 

As has been said the people of the district were almost unanimous 
in espousing the cause of liberty but nevertheless here and there a 
father or a son would take up the king's cause and join the forces of 
the invading army. 

The presence of Burgoyne's army within so short a distance, his 
open threats to wreck vengeance on all who did not seek protection 
within his lines, together with the news of the atrocious cruelty prac- 
ticed by the Indians in massacring Jane McCrea and several other 
helpless victims, aroused the inhabitants of New Perth to find a pro- 
tection more efficient than that of their flimsy block-house and to seek 
safety in flight. In the latter part of the summer of 1777 the place 
seems to have been for the most part abandoned and Fort Salem was 
burned, probably b}' Tories in the vicinity, in the early autumn. But 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 397 

with Biirgoyne's surrender at Saratog'a and the subsequent abandon- 
ment of Ticonderoga by the British, a feeling of security spread 
through the country and the householders of New Perth retvirned un- 
molested to their firesides and spent the winter in comparative quiet 
and peace, with no apprehension for safety other than the dread of 
Indians and wild beasts, which we can imagine to be a very common- 
place sensation to them after the goose-fleshing and marrow-freezing 
experiences of the past year. Another block-house was built at New 
Perth early in 1778, or possibly in 1779, made of logs, twenty feet 
square, and like its predecessors provided with a stockade. It was 
named Fort Williams, after Colonel John Williams, and was for a 
time garrisoned by a regiment of Connecticut militia. From time to 
time there came rumors of invasion, but none of the invasions ever 
materialized and the men of New Perth plowed and sowed and reaped 
in comparative tranquility during the succeeding years of the. war. 

We have at hand schedules giving the names of the possessors of 
land on the Turner patent and showing the numbers of the lots in 
their possession. These bear the dates of 1789 and 1790; they were 
signed by David Hopkins, one of the judges of the Court of Common 
Pleas for the County of Washington, and audited by Peter S. Cur- 
tenius, the state auditor. Their object was to show that the persons 
therein listed had actually resided on " the respective farms named to 
their names " before the outbreak of hostilities between the colonies 
and the Mother Country, that they had been obliged to leave their 
farms by the invasion of the enemy, and that thev were consequently 
entitled to possess their land from that time forth free of quit-rents 
past or future. 

These lists comprise two hundred and eighty-two proprietors and 
one hundred and twenty family names. Several householders pos- 
sessed two or three lots and several family names appear two, 
three and four times on the schedules. The number of families 
therefore who actually resided on the lands of the Turner 
patent previous to the Revolutionary War would be somewhat 
less than two hundred and eighty-two but considerably greater 
than one hundred and twenty. These stateinents however, 
must not at best be taken too seriously as denoting those 
who " actually resided " on the lots of the patent previous to the war. 
The authorities were of course anxious to smooth over old Whig and 
Tory differences when once peace had been proclaimed and in cases 



398 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

where substantial citizens were intent on establishing themselves in 
a certain state it does not appear that the officials enquired any too 
closely into their claims of "actual residence" before the war. Still 
these cases, if any, must have been comparatively rare at a time when 
the difficulties of travelling necessitated an extreme immobility in the 
population, and the figures above given may be accepted without any 
considerable marginal allowances. 

The people of Salem have not been "'amused by strange lights " 
and led away from their family homesteads to as great an extent as 
the present resident might fancy. We find the following names on 
recent assessment rolls, in many cases in the same neighborhoods and 
very near the same lots attached to the names in the schedule of 1789: 
Edgar, Duncan, Fitch, Craig, Conner, Cleveland, Hanna, McMurray, 
Scott, White, Rogers, Wilson, Steele, Moore, McNitt, Brown, McMil- 
lan, Clark, McFarland, Martin, Lytic, McAllister, McNish, Arm- 
strong, Law, Moncrief, Lyon, Nelson, McArthur, Gray, Campbell. 
Bartlett, Conkey, Gibson, Sillis, McCarter, Murdock, Robinson, Rice, 
Stewart, Simpson, Stevenson, Smith, Turner, Thomas, Webb, 
Wright, Clapp, Jackson, Kennedy, McDonald and Mills. 

The following family names appear upon recent township maps 
attached to the same lots that their ancestors are certified to have 
occupied a century and a quarter ago: Boyd, Beattie, Carswell, Cruik- 
shank, McClaughrey, Thompson, Hopkins, Law, McCleary and Wil- 
liams. 

In addition to the Turner patent, the present township of Salem 
comprises several other patents and portions of patents which were 
occupied to some extent before the Revolutionary War. On the west 
there are two lots of the Argyle patent lying between the Battenkill 
and McDougall's lake; in the northeast corner of the town is a small 
triangle consisting of a portion of the Farrant patent, and the whole 
Camden valley in the southeast part of the township is composed of 
the patents of Douane and Cockburn. 

On May 19th, 1770, a patent for two thousand three hundred acres 
of land was issued by George III to a number of officers and privates 
who had served in the late French and Indian War; this was the land 
of the original Camden tract and became the property of James 
Douane two or three years after it was granted. From the possession 
of Doiiane these lands passed into the hands of Philip Embury, under 
a perpetual annual rent of six pence per acre. Philip Embury headed 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 399 

a band of Irish Methodists and settled in this districl in 1769 or 1770. 
Embury, though an adherent of the Ang-lican church, had been favor- 
ably impressed by the teachings of Wesley and is generally considered 
to have been the founder of Methodism in America. His early death 
in 1773, left his people without any one competent wisely to advise 
and lead them, and nearly the whole of his flock became dispersed 
and sought other localities, most of them finally settling in Canada. 

The first town meeting of which the minutes are now to be found, 
was held in 1787. At this meeting it was voted that a pound be built 
on a corner of the ministerial lot belonging to the New England con- 
gregation; that the excise and fines be inspected and that the justices, 
supervisors and poormasters be called to an account respecting the 
same; that hogs be shut up or confined so as not to do damage; that 
a petition be written to the Legislature respecting immorality; that 
none of the inhabitants of Salem be found in the tavern, except upon 
necessary business, after nine o'clock at night; that any man who 
takes a family upon his farm shall return the number and names of 
such family within forty days after their arrival, to the poormasters 
of the district, etc. In 1791 it was voted "that every inhabitant of 
this town shall stop travelers that travel unnecessarily upon the Sab- 
bath." In 1797 again, it was voted that the supervisors and justices 
give no license to Sabbath-breakers. 

In 1 8 10 it was voted that five dollars be raised by a tax of the town 
and be appropriated (together with another sum) for the purpose of 
building a stocks for the town and that the supervisors and town clerk 
superintend the building of the same. In 181 1 the sum of four hun- 
dred dollars was voted towards finishing the academy. In 1815 it was 
resolved that one hundred dollars be raised by tax for the purpose of 
searching for stolen property and the thief or thieves, and that the 
money be paid over to the inspectors of election and they be appointed 
a standing committee to carry the above resolution into effect. In 
181 8 the following certificate of manumission appeared in the records: 

."Know all men by these presents that I, Edward Savage, master 
and owner of a female slave named Lott, have manumitted and dis- 
charged her, the said Lott, from her servitude, and do hereby manu- 
mit, discharge and set free the said Lott." This was in pursuance of 
the act of the Legislature upon the subject of slavery in the state. 
The birth of slave children is occasionally recorded in the town book 
as in 1809: "Peter, born of my negro woman named Beck;" in 1814, 



400 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

"Kate, born of my negro slave woman Amy," and in 1817 ''Cato 
born of Amy, a negro woman." In the village records we find mostly 
the voting of money for fire implements, street lighting, hay scales, a 
public market, etc., and in 1820 we find an ordinance forbidding any 
person to fire for amusement or sport any sort of gun or fire-arms or 
throw any squib or exhibit any fireworks in the village within '"^e dis- 
tance of one hundred yards from any church, meeting house, » '''ing 
house, store house or barn. 

The settlers of Salem made it one of their first concerns to p^ jvide 
for the education of their children, and the men of Dr. Clark's colony 
who left their families in Stillwater in the summer of 1766, occupied 
themselves during that summer not only in clearing their farms and 
building their cabins, but also in constructing a church and a school 
house. This original school house stood near the site of the old frame 
meeting-house already described; it was built at the time of the irst 
log church, and like it, was a rough uncomfortable log structure. In 
addition to this there was a school established in the southern part of 
the township before the Revolutionary War and subsequently district 
schools were organized in every part of the town of Salem. The 
names of these school districts are of interest as denoting early land- 
marks and traditions. Salem, Shushan, Eagleville, Upper Bla :k 
Creek, Lower Black Creek, Upper White Creek, Lower White Creek, 
Upper Camden and Lower Camden are names derived from the vil- 
lages and the natural features of the country. Perkins' Holloa. 
Fitch's Point, Stewart's District and Law's District are all nam^l 
from early families. The districts of Upper Turnpike and Lower 
Turnpike were on the old turnpike respectively north and south of 
Salem, while Red Bridge was named after a red bridge by Vv^hich in 
early times the turnpike crossed the Battenkill. The Bushes district 
was in a wooded section, the Juniper Swamp school house was near 
the swamp of that name and Blind Buck Hollow perpetuates by its 
name an old tradition that a blind deer had its pasture grounds in that 
vicinity. 

In the year 1780 four young men, who afterwards became distin- 
guished in public life, were fitted for college at the school in Salem 
and in 1791 this school had gained such high standing that it was 
incorporated by the Regents of the University of the State of New 
York as an academy. It was named, like the county, after "the father 
of his country," and was the fourth incorporated academy in the state. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 401 

In 1852 the courses of instruction at Washington Academy were made 
free to residents of the village of Salem, making this the first free 
academy in the state otitside the city of New York. The academy 
building is both handsome and capacious. 

The United Presbyterian Church of Salem, may be said to date 
fromJ"ily 23d, 1751, on which day Dr. Clark was installed as pastor 
of <-i ewly formed Presbyterian Church at Ballybay. The present 
cv 'the Old White Church) was built in 1797 at a cost of four 

thou.. -and dollars, which sum was more than met by the sale of the 
pews ijt auction immediately upon the church being fitted for occu- 
pancy. There was originally a high tumbler-shaped pulpit with a 
sounding-board over it, but these have been removed. For more than 
fifty years after Dr. Clark's resignation, the pulpit was occupied by 
James< Proudfit and Alexander, his son. In 1802, the date of James 
Proudfit's death, the membership roll contained three hundred" names. 

T'nfe First Presbyterian church in Salem, the Brick Church, was 
founded by the members of the New England colony in 1769, with 
fifty-two members. These people, however, worshipped generally 
with Dr. Clark's congregation and did not until 1774 begin the erec- 
tion of a meeting-house for themselves. This was a frame structure,. 
aj/.d although it was never completed, it was used by the congregation 
several times for divine services and was utilized at the time of Bur- 
gc yne's invasion as a fort and was burned in the latter part of the 
sv nmer of 1777 by hostile Toriesinthe^elgEborhood; The people 
w ;re slow in recovering from their loss and from the disorganized 
ci^mdition of affairs during the Revolution, and did not erect a second 
rueeting-house until 1783 or 1784. In 1832 the church was remodeled 
and enlarged at a cost of three thousand dollars, but four years later 
the building was completely destroyed by fire. The congregation 
was not, however, daunted and immediately erected a brick edifice, 
on the lines of the present one, in which they worshipped for about 
three years. In 1840 this was almost totally burned; the people of 
the church, however, had no thought of abandoning their good work 
and in the same year rebuilt their house of worship as it now stands. 
The chapel was added subsequently. 

On February i8th, i860, a number of Salem people who had been 
brought up as Episcopalians, being desirous of establishing a church 
of their denomination, met, elected wardens and vestrymen and in- 

L 50 J 



402 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

corporated themselves into a society under the style of "the rector, 
church wardens and vestrymen of St. Paul's church." This was the 
result of a year or more of tentative organizing and on the two Sun- 
days previous, services had been held in the upper room of the old 
court house, the first conducted by the Rev. H. C. Potter and the 
second by the Rev. J. Scarborough, both of Troy. On the 9th of the 
following May the sacrament of baptism and rite of confirmation were 
administered by the Right Rev. Horatio Potter, bishop of New York- 
at which time ten persons were confirmed. On July 2: d of the'Sam^' 
year the Rev. Charles Purviance accepted a call to the rectors.hip of 
the newly organized church and during his incumber c}' the corner 
stone of the present edifice was laid. He remained in Saleni, how- 
ever, but a short time, and it was not until after the election of his 
successor, the Rev. Francis Mansfield, that the church (consisting of 
only the nave of the present structure) was consecrated by Bishop 
Potter. Mr. Mansfield after a few months was succeeded by the Kiev. 
Francis C. Wainwright, who continued as rector until August .rst, 
1862. On February 28th, 1864, the Rev. Henry M. Davis accepted* a 
call to the rectorship of St. Paul's and remained in charge of the pa/''^ 
ish until his death. The Rev. John Henry Houghton, who sticceede 1 
him, remained for fifteen years and during his term the transcepts 
and tower were added to the former church structure, a-' -^ the rectofry 
and parish-house were built. A parish-school was ah ■ ' establishied 
which imder the principalship of Mr. Houghton dev'i'^oped into a 
boarding-school for boys and was continued until 1891. ^ The terra of 
the present rector, the Rev. Harris C. Rush, began in 1890. ^ 

Up to the year 1855 when the Catholic church at Cambridge wat-- 
completed, the residents in the vicinity of Salem had no cliurch where 
they could attend mass nearer than Schaghticoke, Rutland or Troy. 
Services were held from time to time in private houses but no regular 
services were held in Salem until 1859, when the Rev. o'ohn McDer- 
mott, then settled in Cambridge, supervised the erectiori of a Roman 
Catholic church in this place and attended it for four-^y^ars. during 
which time it was dedicated by the Bishop of Albany, 'in 1863 the 
church passed into the hands of the Augustinian Fathers ^' d remained 
under their control for about ten years, as an out-mission -"'"nded by 
the priests who lived in Cambridge. In 1873 the churd^. wa'S trans- 
ferred from the control of the priests of the Order of St. Augustine to 
that of the Bishop of Albany who appointed the Rev. Jam^ O'vSulli- 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— SALEM. 403 

van as the first resident pastor at Salem. He was followed succes- 
sively by the Rev. David Sheehan, the Rev. P. H. Delehanty and the 
Rev. John F. Donahoe. During the pastorate of Father Donahoe the 
present church edifice and priest's house were built. Father Barrett 
is now in charge. 

Methodist meetings were held at irregular intervals in the central 
part of the town as early as 1821. A society was formed in 1825 and 
'^^own to 1839 preaching was maintained regularly by circuit appoint- 
ment. For the two years preceding 1841 no activity seems to have 
been shown by the Methodists in the neighborhood, but in that year 
three former Salemites, who were then living in Troy, returned to 
their earlier residence for a time, and being greatly interested in 
Methodism held some meetings in the school house. These gather- 
ings resulted ultimately in a very wide and successful revival and in 
1844 the Rev. John Fassett was appointed by the bishop presiding 
over the Troy Conference to labor in Salem. From this time on ser- 
vices were regularly held and in 1846 a small house of worship was 
erected on the site of the present church. After thirty years of use 
his building was taken down and in 1876 work was begun on the 
( lifice which now serves as a house of worship to the Methodists of 
Salem. 

" The Ban^- of Salem " was organized largely through the efforts of 
the late B. 1 Bancroft, as a state bank, in 1854, with Bernard Blair as 
president. ^" 1865 when the national system came in this bank was 
closed and ' 'he National Bank of Salem " was formed with the Hon. 
C. L. Allen as president and B. F. Bancroft as cashier. In 1885 at 
the expiration of its charter this bank closed and the " First National 
Bank of Salem " was formed with B. F. Bancroft as president and M. 
L. vSheldon as cashier. On Mr. Bancroft's death in 1886 Mr. Sheldon 
succeeded to the presidency, which office he now holds. The bank 
has a capital f $50,000, and a surplus of $27,000. 

"The Per )les' National Bank of Salem" was organized in 1884 
under the i .^sidency of the Hon. Lonson Eraser, with Robert M. 
Stevenson a cashier. Judge Eraser was followed in office successively 
b}' Charles "^yon, William C. Larmon and Warren Ken3^on, who is 
now the •■ .sident. Benjamin C. Haggert is at present the cashier 
and Otis Wii.:,on the teller. The bank has a capital of $50,000 and a 
surplus of $7,900. The undivided profits are more than $3,000. 



404 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Following- is a list of the supervisors of the town of Salem from 
1787 to 1900 : 

17S7-&8, John Rowan; 1789, James Tomb; 1790, Hamilton McAllister; 1 791-1795, 
John Williams; 1796, Alex. T. Turner; 1 797-1 800, David Thomas; 1801-1803, Ed- 
ward Savage; 1804, Abner Stone; 1805-06, John Savage; 1807, Andrew Lytle; 1808- 
09, John Gray; 1810-11, David Woods; 1812, Alex. McNish; 1813, John Savage; 
1814-15, John Williams; 1816-17, Philo Curtis; 1818-20, JohnCrary; 1821-22, James 
Harvey; 1823-33, John McMurray; 1834-35, Bernard Blair; 1836, James B. Steven- 
son; 1837-38, Aaron Martin, Jr. ; 1839, James B. Stevenson; 1840, Stephen Ransom; 
1841, John McMurray; 1842, Alex. Robertson; 1843, Marvin Freeman; 1844, William 
McKie; 1845-46-47, John McNaughton; 1848-49-50. Jarvis Martin ; 1851-52-53-54, Jose- 
phus Fitch; 1855-56, John R. Lytle; 1857-58, James M. Thompson; 1859-60, Josephus 
Fitch; 1861-66, Alex. B. Law; 1867, James M. Thompson; 1868, James Gibson; 
1869-70, Robert M. Stevenson; 1&71, Edward G. Johnson; 1872-73, William McFar- 
land; 1874, James M. Thompson; 1875, Robert McFarland; 1876, Smith H. Brownell; 
1877, Daniel B. Cole; 1878-79, John Edwards; 1880, Robert M. Stevenson; 1881-2, 
James M. Thompson; 1883, Robert M. Stevenson; 1884, Thomas W. Stevenson; 
1885-86-S7-88, Charles W. Larmon; 1889-90-91. Frederick Fraser; 1892-93, Brommie 
Copeland; 1894-95-96-97, N. Austin Baker; 1898-99-1900, James H. Chamberlin. 

The town clerks of Salem for the same period were : 

17S7-1S05, James Tomb; 1806, James Hawley ; 1807, James Tomib; 1808, Alex. 
Simpson, Jr.; i8og-io-ii D. Matthews, Jr.; 1812-13, Henry Matthews; 1814-15, 
James McNish; 1816, Henry Matthews; 1817, James McNish; 1818-19, Joseph Haw- 
ley; 1820-25, James McNish; 1826-32, Henry Matthews; 1833, John W. Proudfit; 
1834-39, Alonzo Gray; 1840-41, James A. McFarland; 1842, John M. Martin; 1843-44- 
45, William B. Harkness; 1846, William R. Austin; 1847, James A. McFarland; 
1848-49, William R. Austin; 1S50-53, Orrin Atistin; 1854, Dirck C. Russell; 1855-56, 
W. McFarland, 2nd; 1857-58, James M. Crawford; 1S59, Orrin Austin; i860, James 
Blashfield; 1861, John Liddle; 1862-67, William McFarland; 1868, Stockwell Liddle ; 
1869, Edwin McNaughton; 1870, William B. Bool; 1871-72, Edwin McNaughton; 
1873-79, John W. Dobbin; 1880-83, John S. Beattie; 1884, John J, Ryan; 1885, A. M. 
Young; 1886-87, Joseph Hafert; 18S8, Brommie Copeland; 1889-90, Harvey B. 
Cruikshank; 1891-93, Alex. Smart; 1894-98, B. J. Abbott; 1899-1900, Thomas R. 
Lewis. 

The presidents of the village of Salem since 1803 have been: 
1803, James Harvey; 1804-05, John Williams; 1806-07, Anthonj- J. Blanchard; 
1808-09, James Harvey; 1810, John Gray; 181 1, David B. Gray; 1812-13, John Gray; 
1814, David Wood; 1815-16, James Nichols; 1817-20, Joseph Hawley; 1S21-22, James 
Harvey; 1823, Anthony J. Blanchard; 1824, John Williams; 1825, John McLean, Jr. ; 
1826, Anthony J. Blanchard; 1827, John Willard; 1828-31, Cornelius L. Allen; 
1832-33, Major James Harvey; 1834-35-36, Joseph Hawley; 1837, John Williams, Jr.; 
1838-40, John Creary; 1841, Henrjj^ Matthews; 1842, Alex. Robertson; 1843, Cornelius 
L. Allen; 1844, Joseph Hawley; 1845, Abner Austin; 1846-47, Josephus Fitch; 1848, 
Oliver Whitcomb; 1849, James W. Peters; 1850-51, Cornelius L. Allen; 1852-53, 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— GRANVILLE. 405 

Joseph Fitch; 1854 56, David T. Archibald; 1857, Marinus Fairchild; 1S58-61, Timo- 
thy Cronan ; 1862, Alex. McDougall; 1863-64, John Howe; 1865, Matthias Bartlett; 
1866-68, James McNaughton; 1869-96, Col. Solomon W. Russell; 189697, A. K. 
Broughton; 1897-98, John C. McNaughton; i8gS-gg. Frank Wright; 1899-1900, James 
Gibson, Jr.; 1900-01, Delbert J. Abbott. 

The village clerks of Salem during the same period have been: 
1803-07, J. Bostwick; 1808-30, Philo Curtis; 1831-32, Henry W. Dodd; 1833-36, C. 
Stevens; 1837-47, James Gibson; 1848, S. B. Shipley; 1849-50, James Gibson; 1851-54, 
S. B. Shipley; 1855-57, Charles A. White; 1858-61, B. F. Robinson; 1S62-68, John W. 
McFarland; 1869-70, George N. Arnott, (resigned in 1870 and Joseph Oliver ap- 
pointed to fill out term); 1871-82, Joseph Oliver; 1883-4, Charles E. Blashfield; 1884-5, 
Harry E.Cole; 1886-95, Solomon W.Russell, Jr.; 1895-6, B. C. Haggart; 1896-7. 
Frank A. Hill; 1897-8, George B. McCartee, Jr.; iSgS 1901, Frank A. Hill. 



TOWN OF GRANVILLE. 

"This town is noted for its great slate quarries which are the basis 
of its immense slate industry. It lies on the eastern side of Washing- 
ton Count3% touching the state of Vermont by which it is bounded on 
the east. Its northern boundary touches Whitehall and Hampton; 
on the west are HartfofcTand J::*"oft Ann ; Hebron is on the south. 

Granville is a hilly town, but those hills are ribbed with valuable 
slate and although the town has its rugged aspect, it also has its beau- 
tiful and fertile valleys. The principal stream is the Pawlet or Met- 
towee river which with its tributaries drains this part of the county. 

There are no authentic records of the dates of the first settlements. 
Hollister says that there were settlements before the Revolutionary 
War, but does not attempt to fix exact dates for the incoming of the 
first pioneers, and when settlers began to take up land in this tract 
they came slowly because of the Revolutionarj' War and also on 
account of territorial disputes between the states of New York and 
Vermont, which interfere with land titles. The first settlers seem to 
have come mostly from New England and after the settlement of the 
boundary question, which is fully treated of under its proper head, 
the progress of settlement became more rapid. 

The first settlement must have been as early as 1770, perhaps some- 
what earlier, for on September 11, 1764, two brothers, Alexander and 
Thomas Menzies were each granted a patent of 2,000 acres of land in 
the northern part of the town, and on Septen^er 5th of the same year 
Erick Sutherland received 2,000 acres, and it is not improbable that 



406 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

some settler or settlers, loeated on these traets within the next few 
yeai's. 

On Mareh 7, 1771, John Mannsell reeeived a grant of 5,000 acres in 
the northeastern part of the town. Later patents were the Watkins, 
Berr}', Hntchinson, Farqnar, Dupason, Byrnes, Campbell and Grant 
traets. It is improbable that any of these men beeame actnal settlers; 
it is almost certain that they secnred the land for speculative pur- 
poses. Hougii says that the land of this town was embraced in 
" grants made to about thirty captains and lieutenants who had served 
in the French war," and army officers have not been conspicuous as 
laborers in the history of any country. Besides it is a matter of his- 
tory that the Byrnes Patent in the southeast corner was sold to 
Kenneth McKenncth of New York who disposed of it to Donald 
Fisher, a tailor of that city. 

Following" is a list of pioneer settlers prior to 1790: Daniel Curtice. 
Nathaniel Spring, Moses Saw'yer, Ebenezer Gould, David Doane, John 
Bateman, John Spring, Asaph Cook, James Otis, Timoth}^ Allen, 
David Skinner, Deacon Skinner, Joseph Herrington, Christopher 
Potter, Captain John Stocking, Gurdon Johnson, Major Thomas Con- 
vers, Captain John IMcWhorter, Lieutenant Henry Watkins, Jonathan 
Hernden, Daniel H. White, Solomon Baker, John Walker, Benjamin 
Wait, Hephon Austin, F. S. Hodge, Timothy Case, Joseph Andrew^s, 
Reuben Graves, Daniel Porter, Joseph Woodworth, Zacheus Patter- 
son, Benjamin Marsh, Joseph Northup, John Crarj^ Joseph Cook, 
Ebenezer Chapin, Jonathan Wright, Amos Beard, Peter Parker, Ben- 
jamin Parker, Cornelius and Joshua Whitney, Nathan Day, Luther 
Cady, Ezra Lee, Lemuel Barber, Amasa Cook, Nathaniel Parker, 
Coomer Mason. 

After 1790 when the disputes between New Y''ork and Vermont 
were settled so that land titles were safe, immigrants came in rapidly 
and the population soon became large. 

No record exists of the organization of Granville, but the town was 
formed by act of legislature in 1786 and the first town meeting of 
w^iich there is any record was held in 1787. 

Following is the complete list of the supervisors of the town of 
Granville from 1787 up to 1900: 

1787-1789, Daniel Curtis; i79o-i!Soi, Timothy Leonard; 1S02, Jaeob Holmes; 1803, 
John Kirtland: 1804-5, Jaeob Holmes; i3o6-]Si2, John Kirtland; 1S13-1S13, Isaac 
Bishop; 1S16-17, William Raymond ; 1818-19. Salem Town; 1820-1822, Martin Lee; 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— GRANVILLE. 407 

1823-24, Samuel Standish; 1825, Isaac Bishop; 1826-1833, Jonathan Todd; 1834, John 
C. Parker; 1835, James W. Parker; 1836-37, Jonathan Todd; 1838-1840, Reuben 
Skinner; 1841, Isaac Munroe, Jr. ; 1842-3, Isaac W. Bishop; 1844, 3. D. Utter; 1845, 
Edward Buckley; 1846, Fayette L. Spencer; 1847, James Norton; 1848, James Hop- 
kins; i849,^lfred Buckley; 1850, Isaac Norton; 1851-2, Oscar F. Thompson; 1853, 
Isaac Norton; 1854, Nathaniel Mason; 1855-1857, Oscar F. Thompson; 1858-9, Ervin 
Hopkins; i860, William H. Allen; 1861, Edward Beecher; 1862-3, William H. Allen; 
1864, Georj^e N. Bates; 1865, William H. Allen; 1866-7, Samuel Thomas; 1868-9, 
Royal C. Bates; 1770, John Watkins; 1871, Silas Hall; 1872. David Brown; 1873, Pal- 
mer D. Evarts; 1874, David Brown; 1875-1877, David B. Temple; 1878-9, Asbury H. 
Merriam; 1880-81, M. K. Wait; 1882, Marcus B. Allen; 1883, George W. Henry; 1884, 

E. J. Brown; 1885-6, George W. Henry; 1K87, Henry Dillingham: 1888, John S. War- 
ren; 1889-1891, John M. Hulett; 1892-3, Edwin B. Temple; 1894-5, Frank E. Hicks, 
(one term of two years); 1896-97-98, Eugene B. Norton; 1898, E. C. Whittemore, 
still in office, 1900. 

The town clerks for the same period were: 
1787-1789, Gordon Johnson; 1790, Daniel Curtis; 1791, Timothy Leona-rd; 1792- 
1794, Daniel Curtis; 1795, Gordon Johnson; 1797-1801, Daniel Curtis; 1802-1807, Asa 
Reynolds; 1808-1815, William Raymond, Jr.; 1816- 1820, John Wells; 1821-22, Robert 
Sackrider; 1823-24, John Wells; 1825, Jonathan Todd; 1826-33, John C. Parker; 1834- 
35, Philander Hitchcock; 1836, Nathan Doanc; 1837, John C. Parker; 1838-41, George 
N. Bates; 1842-43, S. H. Cowan: 1844, Alfred Buckley; 1845, H. D.Sargent; 1846- 
47, Alfred Buckley; 1848, F. A. Barker; 1849-1860, Benjamin F. Ottarson; ■ 1861-62, 
fieorge N. Bates; 1863, Robert J. Humphrey; 1864, Benjamin F. Ottarson; 1865, 
William H. Cowen; 1866-69, Benjamin F. Ottarson; 1870-1872, William Lyons; 1873, 
Benjamin F. Ottarson; 1874-1876, Michael Welch; 1877, S. K. Potter; 1878-79, Lewis 

F. Stickney; 1880-1883, E. B. Norton; 1884, Ellis Williams; 1885, E. R. Norton; 1886- 
1889, A. T. Hughes; 1890-1892, William Amidon; 1893-94, James M. Potter; 1895, 
Will E. Roberts, who is still in office in the year 1900. 

The first saw mill at Granville was erected in or prior to 1784 by 
Elijah White and in 1787 Nathaniel Spring- built a grist mill. In 1795 
a Mr. Jenks had a store at North Granville. 

The people of the town generally spun wool and even flax in the 
early days. The first carding machine was brought here from Eng- 
land about the beginning of the nineteenth century. Potash and 
pearl ash were extensively exported from Granville during the cut- 
ting down and consumption of the forests, and tanneries were numer- 
ous while the supply of bark existed. 

In 1850 slate was discovered in Granville and this date also marks 
the beginning of the influx of the Welsh population. Several strong- 
companies and individuals prosecute this great industry and the quar- 
ries produce unlimited quantities of roofing slate, school slates and a 



408 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

superior article for marbleized work. The green slate of some of the 
quarries is particularly valuable. 

The cheese interests of Granville are large and the factories at 
Granville, Middle Granville and South Granville are in a flourishing 
condition and stimulate the dairy interests over a large section of 
country. 

The Mettowee Agricultural Society was organized April 4, 1874, 
and has done much to stimulate the farming interests. 

The village of Granville is the largest in the town and is also one 
of the notable business centers of the county. John C. Bishop is 
accredited with being the first settler on its site and also its first mer- 
chant. There was a grist mill, saw mill and fulling mill here at an 
early date. A hemp mill came soon after these. This was replaced 
by a woolen mill in 1840 and this subsequently became a knitting 
mill. 

Prominent business men who helped to develop the village were 
Reuben Skinner from 181 1 to 1830; Jonathan Todd and Colonel Lee 
T. Rowley from 1828 to 1840, Rufus Graves and Dr. McClure opened 
a store about 1825, Dr. John E. Strong, Alfred Bulkley, Rufus G. 
Fordish, Joseph Allen, Charles W. Potter, Henry D. Sargent, Ira 
Marks and Morgan Duel. 

The National Bank of Granville was organized April 21, 1875. 
Trinity Episcopal Church of Granville was organized July 15, 18 15, 
the Wesleyan Methodist church on June 15, 1843, and the Methodist 
Episcopal church in 1827. The Wesleyan Methodist church went out 
of existence in the early fifties. The First Baptist church was estab- 
lished in 1876. 

The village of Granville was incorporated in 1885, although for 
some years previous there had been a partial incorporation for the 
purpose of fire protection. 

Following is a list of the presidents and village clerks since the vil- 
lage incorporation: 

Presidents— 1985-86, Daniel D. Woodard; 1887, Byron H. Sykes; 1888, Stacey K. 
Potter; 1889, Alonzo H. Morton; 1890-91-92. Eugene R. Norton; 1893, Henry Dil- 
lingham; 1894-95 96-97, William H. Hughes; 1898-99-1900, James E. Goodman. 

Village Clerks — 1885 to 1893 inclusive, John S. Warren; 1894-95-96, Jurden E. 
Seeley; 1897 to 1900 inclusive, John Gilroy, who still holds office. 

North Granville lies in the northwestern part of the town. The 
river at this point is capable of furnishing considerable power. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— EASTON. 409 

The North Granville Baptist church was organized August i8, 
1784, and the Presbyterian church, February 22, 18 10, as a congrega- 
tional society. It became Presbyterian in 1823. The Methodist 
Episcopal church was formed in i860. St. Patrick's Catholic church 
was founded about 1852, but meetings had been held for some time 
previous to that date at the house of Miles Cahoes. 

The North Granville National Bank was established in 187 1. It 
was first organized in Fort Edward in 1855 and was known as the 
Farmer's Bank of Washington County. 

Middle Granville was the earliest business point in the town. 
Tradition credits Captain David Rood with building the first house 
there. He also put up a saw mill. Other early business men were 
William Hollister, Captain Abraham Dayton, Captain Cowan and 
Kingsley and Goodrich. 

In i860 two Welch societies were formed, one Presbyterian and the 
other Congregational, at Middle Granville. 

The Catholic church' at Middle Granville, known as " Our Lady of 
Mount Carmel " was founded in 1867. St. Patrick's church at North. 
Granville was established in 1852. 

TOWN OF EASTON. 

This is the second largest town in Washington County and contains 
38,834 acres. It was originally a part of the Saratoga patent of 1684 
and was afterwards a part of the towns of Stillwater and Saratoga: 
which were then included in Albany County. On March 3,, 1789,. it 
was erected into a separate town and was named Easton because it 
was the most eastern town of the patent. It became part of Wash- 
ington County February 7, 1791. It is the southwest town of Wash- 
ington County and is bounded on the north by Greenwich,, on the 
east by Jackson and Cambridge, on the south by Rensselaer County 
and on the west by the Hudson river. 

The surface of this town is diversified being level along the Hud- 
son and slightly rolling towards the east where it breaks intO' hills. 
The principal peaks are Willard's mountain, Swan mountain, Whel- 
den hill, Harrington hill and Cement mountain. Willard's mountain! 
derives its name from the act of a Mr. Willard making a reconnoisance 
of the British position from the top of this hill during Burgoyne's. 

[51 J 



410 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

campaig-n. This g-entleman owned a tract of land including this 
mountain at that time. The town is drained by the Hudson and the 
Battenkill. Quite a portion of the latter stream is very picturesque 
in this locality and that part of it close to the " Devil's Caldron " is a 
great attraction to sight-seers and its beauties have been depicted by 
not a few writers. A large swamp called the " Fly " covers quite an 
area in the eastern part of the town. 

The western part of Easton touching the Hudson caused it to be 
traversed by war trails and to be the scene of nearly all the struggles 
that have been enacted upon the upper Hudson. Some of the mili- 
tary expeditions of the inter-colonial wars passed through this town, 
but all these and the military posts and forts have been treated of in 
the earlier part of this work, under their proper head. 

Regarding- the early settlement of Easton nothing is known which 
can be stated as an historic fact prior to 1760. It is probable that 
there were settlers previous to the war of 1744 and it is just as proba- 
ble that some of these returned between 1746 and 1754 when the last 
French war broke out, but there are no authentic records of either. 
This war closed in 1760 and soon afterwards several settlers came into 
the town and located upon the fertile lands along the Hudson. These, 
however, had hardly become established in their primitive homes 
when the Revolutionary War broke upon them and again the develop- 
ment of the town was delayed. Many families fled to safer localities, 
as they did from Kingsbury and other towns, and did not return until 
peace was established. Among the early settlers of whom we have 
record there were Nathan Tefft who came in 1766 and Killian DeRid- 
der who came in 1767. He was a Hollander. From 1773 to 1789 
quite a number of settlers cast their lot in this town. Among them 
were Thomas Beadle, Elijah Freeman, Thomas Dennis, Jacob Haner, 
Jonathan Wilbur, John Fish, Charles Russell. George Deuel, Abner 
Fuller, Richard Davenport, Peter Becker, William Abeel, Abraham 
Wright, Rensselaer Schuyler, William Thompson, Gerrett Wendell, 
Garrett Van Buren, Peter Rundel, Captain Van Vost, Samuel Shel- 
don, James Storms. Rufus Hall, Zebulon Hoxsie, William Foster, 
David Pettys and his son, David Pettys, Jr., Stephen Anthony, Ben- 
jamin and Ephraim Fish, Samuel Cook, Morton and Henry Van 
Buren, Gideon Bowditch, Joseph Potter, Abel Coon, Elihu, Edmund 
and Jedediah Robinson, Robert Dennis, Richard Macomber, Brazilla 
and Abraham Pease, Benjamin Starbuck, James, Philip and Joseph 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— EASTON. 411 

Smith, Eleazer Slocum, Elisha Freeman, Sylvester Satterlee, Jacob 
Benson, Tyler Wilcox, Abraham Russell, Greeve Hall, Garrett 
Lansing, Squire Thomas Smith, Sterling Waters, Asa and Ezra Cran- 
dall, Roswell Osborn, Alexander Case, Francis Brock, John Pettys 
and David Remington. 

The first merchant in the town was Garrett Lansing. In 1810 John 
Gale built a grist mill at Galesville and in 1846 he put up a woolen 
mill at the same place. 

The town of Easton has several thriving villages and communities, 
notably Easton, North Easton, South Easton, Crandall's Corners and 
Fly Summit. Easton is the oldest village in the town. Jacob Benson 
was the first settler. A blacksmith shop was erected in 1800 by 
George Allen and soon afterwards different business enterprises were 
started. 

North Easton was formerly called Easton Corners and prior' to that 
Starbuck's Corners, after Nathaniel Starbuck, the first business man 
there and the founder of the place. It was finally called North Eas- 
ton as a distinguishing name. 

Easton has always been abreast of the times in schools and 
churches. The first school in the town was opened near Greenwich 
in 1787 and the first school commissioners were elected in 18 14. They 
were James Mallory, Charles Starbuck and Philander Tobey. 

Marshall Seminary was established in 1863 in the northern part of 
the village of Easton. It v/as named after Benjamin Marshall, one- 
of the original stockholders. In 1850 it was purchased by the Society 
of Friends. The original building was destroyed by fire in 1873 and 
the present structure was built in 1874. Its use as a seminary has 
been discontinued. 

The Friends were the earliest Christian body to organize in the 
town and it is a notable fact that the few of them who were in Easton 
when the French War broke out, did not leave their homes as did the 
other settlers. Their meetings at Easton date back to 1773, the first 
being held in the house of Zebulon Hoxie. In 1775 the first meeting 
house was built. This was a log structure which was replaced in 1787 
by a frame edifice. In 1838 a brick church was built in the village of 
Easton. 

The Reformed Church of Easton was organized in 1803, as " The 
Reformed Protestant Dutch church of Easton." It was re-oreanized 



412 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

under its present name in 1S72. The first church building was com- 
pleted in 1805. 

The Methodist Episcopal church of Easton was organized some 
time prior to 1835 but the date is not known. In that year they 
erected a church near North Easton. This was replaced by a fine 
structure in 1850. 

The town records go back to 1793, and following is a list of the 
supervisors and town clerks from that date up to the close of the 
nineteenth century: 

Supervisors — 1793, Philip Smith; 1794, Stanton Tefft; 1795-98, Thomas Dennis; 
1799-1800, Jonathan Mosher; 1801-02, Daniel Beadle; 1803-04, H. Van Shaick; 1805- 
1808, Daniel Beadle; 1809, John Gale- 1810, Jonathan Mosher; 1811-12, John Gale; 
1813-14, Charles Starbuck; 1815-16, Calvin Smith; 1817, James Mallory; 1818-19, 
James Tefft; 1820, Jonathan Mosher; 1821-22, John Davenport; 1823, Esek Brownell; 
1S24-1826, James Tefft; 1827-28, Gideon Cornell ; 1829-30, Anson Bigelow; 1831, John 
Davenport; 1832-33, Peleg Thomas; 1834, Aaron Barker; 1835-36, Peleg Thomas; 
1837, Aaron Barker; 1838-39, Peleg Thomas; 1840-42, Anson Bigelow; 1843-44, Allen 
Gifford; 1845-46, Thomas D. Beadle; 1847, JobEldridge; 1848, Anson Bigelow; 1849, 
Joel Buckley; 1850-51, Peleg Thomas; 1852, Adam Cottrell; 1853, Elihu Gifford; 
1854, Adam Cottrell; 1855, Russell S. Borden; 1856-57, Adam Cottrell; 1858, Jesse 
B. Fursman; 1859, Russel S. Borden; i860, Simon Burton; 1861-62, Horace Cottrell; 
1863-64, John Wetsell; 1865-66, Edmond W. Hollister; 1867-1869, Warren Crandall; 
1870, Andrew Thompson; 1871-72, James B.Allen; 1873-1875, James Hill; 1876-77, 
J. Warren Fort; 1878-79, Harvey Tubbs; 1&80-81. E. R. Hegerman ;, 1882-83, Frank- 
lin Silvey; 1884-85, Royal Slocum; 1886-1888, Harvey Tubbs; 1889, Wilbur Fryer; 

1890, Thomas W. Brownell; 1891, Harvey Slocum ; 1892-93, Lewis G. Snell; 1894- 
1897, F. D. Thompson; 1898-1900, Albert Pierce. 

Town Clerks — 1793-94, Richard Macomber; 1795-1797, Gilbert Gardner ; 1798- 
1800, William Woolley ; i8oi-i8og, Charles Starbuck; 1810-1815, Jacob Van Buren ; 
1 816, Charles Starbuck; 1817, Philander Tobey ; 1818, Calvin Smith; 1819, Luke 
Chapin; 1820, Calvin Everest; 1821-22, Stephen Jackson ; 1823-1828, Abraham Cor- 
nell ; 1829-1840, Joel Potter; 1841-1844, Russell S. Borden; 1845-1S50, Alfred Worth; 
1851, Alexander H. B. Potter; 1852, James Barr; 1853, Alfred Worth; 1854, Alexan- 
der H. B. Potter; 1855, George Osborn ; 1856-1862, Alexander H. B. Potter; 1863-64, 
Richard L. Eddy; 1865-1868, Charles A. Cornell; 1869-1876, Elijah S. Anthony; 1877- 

1891, Frederick H. Merrill ; 1892-1897, Charles C. Allen; 1898-1900, Frederick H. 
Merrill. 



TOWN OF DRESDEN. 

Although comparatively small in population this town is of special 
interest because of its fine scenery and picturesque surroundings. It 
lies in the northern part of the county on the western side and is 



CxAZETTEER OF TOWNS— DRESDEN. 413 

bounded on the east by Lake Champlain and South Bay, while its 
western side is washed by the historic and beautiful Lake George. 
To the north is Putnam and on the south Fort Ann. 

The town as it exists at present comprises parts of six different 
patents, namely: "Alexander Turner's great patent," subsequently 
known as the "William's patent," "Turner's little patent," the 
" Thomas and Turner patent " since known as the " Mitchell patent," 
"the Stewart patent," the " Lake George tract" and the " vSouth Bay 
tract." 

The conformation of Dresden is rough and mountainous; from the 
shores of Lake Champlain the hills gradually rise and attain their 
greatest altitude near the shore of Lake George, toward which they 
break down sharply, forming precipices in some parts. Among the 
hills are some noteworthy peaks such as Elephant mountain to the 
south of Bosom Bay, Sugar-Loaf near the center of the town, Spruce 
moimtain north of Knowlton's Bay, Hog's Back in the southeastern 
part of the town and Black mountain which rises to a height of 2878 
feet above the level of Lake George. 

The principal stream in the town is Pike brook which rises near the 
center and flows in a southerly direction, emptying into South Bay. 
The town has a notable body of water known as Long Pond which 
lies somewhat to the southeast of the center of the town. 

The cultivated lands lie mostly along the shores of Lake Champlain, 
South Bay and Lake George. Lumbering and boating are prominent 
occupations as well as farming. 

The settlement of Dresden is of later date by many years than that 
of several other towns of the county. The first settler was Joseph 
Phipeny who located at the mouth of South Bay about 1784. Soon 
other settlers came in and at the beginning of the nineteenth century 
there were settlements in different parts of the town. Among those 
who came in between 1784 and 18 10 w^ere Ebenezer Chapman, Daniel 
Ruff, Roger Barrett, James Snody, Palmer Blunt, Abraham demons. 
Doty Allen, Orrin Brewster, Israel Woodcock. John Burgess, Harvey 
Hullet, Amariah Taft, Elijah Nobles, Amos Slater, Welcome Hulett, 
Charles Nobles, John H. Waters, Isaac Hurlbtirt, Dr. Nathaniel 
Rhoads. Levi Belden, Solomon Belden, Jonathan Mclntyre, Elancthan 
Dunham and Walter Benjamin. The first white settler on Lake 
George was a Frenchman named Levisee. 

This town was formerly part of the town of Fort Ann and was set 



414 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

off from that town in 1806, but it and Putnam were one community. 
On March 22, 1822, the town of South Bay was set off from the town 
of Putnam and on April 17th of the same year it was re-named 
" Dresden." 

The Delaware & Hudson railroad passes through this town and two 
stations, Dresden and Chubb's Dock lie within its limits. The village 
of Dresden is the business center of the town. The First Baptist 
church at Dresden was organized in 1823 at the house of Deacon 
Huntingdon. 

Knowlton's Bay and Bosom Bay, two popular summer resorts on 
Lake George, lie within this town. Knowlton's Bay is one of the 
picturesque places upon this beautiful lake. Dresden also possesses 
a remarkable cave discovered in 1877 by James Adams and about 
which interesting legends are told. 

The records of the town of Dresden were all destroyed by the tire 
which consumed the store of George L. demons in the winter of 
1875-6. 

Following is a list of the supervisors and clerks of the town since 
its organization in 1823: 

Supervisors — 1823, Isaac Boomer; 1824-25, Daty Allen; 1826, Elnathan Benjamin;. 
1827, Palmer Blunt; 1828-1830, Elnathan Benjamin ; 1831-1841, David Barrett; 1842, 
Hiram Belden; 1843, Darius Jones; 1844, J. F. Mclntyre; 1845, Darius Jones; 1846- 

1848. Ralph Barber; 1849, Harvey Hulett; 1850, O. demons; 1851-52, Samuel O. 
Welch; 1853-54, Joseph Beebe; 1855, Burr Benjamin; 1856, Oliver L. Steere; 1857-58, 
Burr Benjamin; 1859, J- Bartholomew; i860, Oliver L. Steere; 1861-62, Charles Ben- 
jamin; 1863-64, Israel Woodcock; 1865, Harvey Hulett, Jr. ; 1866, Joseph Bartholo- 
mew; 1867-68, David Barrett; 1869-70, Charles Benjamin; 1871-72, Joseph Beebe; 
1873-74, Joseph Barrett; 1875, David Barrett; 1876, Oliver L. Steere; 1877-78. Daniel 
L. Flandreau; 1879-1881, Timothy M. Slight; 1882-1884, George L. demons; 1885, 
James Adams; 1886, George L. demons; 1887-S8, Gardner F. Belden; 1889-1892, J. 
H. demons; 1893, David W. Phillips; 1894-95, Charles Mellon; 1896-1898, Harlan A. 
Walker; 1899-1900, H. W. Buckell. 

Town Clerks — 1823, Daty Allen; 1824-1826, Abraham demons; 1827, Elnathan 
Benjamin; 1828, Daty Allen; 1829, David Barrett ; 1830, Amos Slater; 1831-32, Ralph 
Barber; 1833-1837, Duthan Benjamin ; 1838-1841, Benjamin Benjamin ; 1842, Darius 
Jones; 1843-1845, William Snody; 1846-47. Luther Carter; 1848, Samuel O. Welch ; 

1849, David Barrett; 1850-1854, Luther Carter; 1855-57, Reuben J. Hurlburt: 1858, 
George Bartholomew; 1859-60, Charles Benjamin; 1861, Joseph Bartholomew; 1S62- 
1864, Roswell C. Beebe ; 1865, Israel Woodcock; 1866-1868, Richard W. Phillips; 
1869, Amos Walker; 1870-1873, Thomas Bartholomew; 1874, L. D. Carter; 1875-76, 
George L. demons; 1877-1887. James K. Benjamin; 1888, A. O. demons, 2d; 1889, 
A. O. Clemons; 1890, David W. Phillips; 1891-1S95, F. M. Bartholomew; 1896-1900, 
J. H. Clemons. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— ARGYLE. 415 



TOWN OF ARGYLE. 

This town lies in the central part of Washington County and was 
named after the Duke of Argyle, a Scottish nobleman and head of a 
house which still exists. At first this town included not only its 
present territory but also the towns of Greenwich and Fort Edward. 
Greenwich was set off in 1803 and Fort Edward in 18 18. Argyle is 
bounded on the north by King-sbury and Hartford, on the east by 
Salem and Hebron, on the south by Greenwich and on the west by 
Fort Edward. It contains nearly 35,000 acres of land which is mostly 
very fertile. The soil is clay loam which in some localities is mixed 
with gravel or disintegrated slate. 

Argyle is a hilly town and toward its eastern border is quite rugged, 
the hills assuming- proportions which have led to some of them being- 
named mountains; of these Todd's mountain is the principal- peak. 
The principal stream is the Moses Kill, which flows diagonally across 
the town in a south-westerly course and empties into the Hudson at 
Fort Edward. Argyle boasts two beautiful lakes, Cossayuna and 
Argyle lake, the former in the south-east, the latter in the southern 
part of the town. Cossayuna lake is about three and half miles long 
b}' half a mile wide. Its waters are deep, clear Bnd beautiful and its 
banks are picturesque, rising into hills covered with pines. A fine 
island near its northern extremity adds to its attractiveness. This 
lake is a pleasant summer resort. 

In 1738 Captain Loughlin Campbell came to this country with a 
party of Highlanders and intended to settle in or about the present 
town of Argyle, but Governor Clarke and the Legislature caused him 
so much delay that Captain Campbell died before he could secure a 
title to the grant of land promised him. The colony he brought with 
him was thus forced to break up and each look after his own personal 
welfare. 

On May 21, 1764, Alexander McNaughton and one hundred and six 
others of the original Campbell settlers and their descendants received 
a grant of 47,700 acres of land lying between the Fort Edward and 
Salem grants, and thus began the first official settlement of Argyle. 
By the provisions of this grant the tract was also made a township 
and provision made for the election of officers. No individual could 
obtain more than six hundred acres and a condition of the patent was 
that " an annual quit rent of two shillings and six pence sterling was 



416 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

imposed on every one hundred acres, and all mines of gold and silver, 
and all pine trees suitable for masts for the royal navy, namely, all 
which were twenty-four inches or more in diameter, twelve inches 
from the ground, were reserved to the crown." 

Overlooking, or disdaining the nature of the country, the patentees, 
evolved a plan for having a great street run through their domain 
upon which each man was to have a town lot, so as to enjoy the pro- 
tection and society of his neighbors. In the rear of the town lots 
were to be farm lots where extensive farms might be opened up. The 
survey was made and the grant alloted upon this plan. One hundred 
and thirty-three lots were thus laid out, of which sixty were south of 
the. street and seventy-three north of the street. 

Five of these lots were in what is now the town of Greenwich and 
ten of them constituted what is now the town of Fort Edward. 

A large number of the grantees settled upon their lands, but many 
did not and their allotments after being unoccupied for a time became 
the property of squatters or other settlers. Among the grantees who 
settled upon their land were : Duncan McArthur, James Gillis, Dun- 
can Taylor, Archibald McNeil, John Todd, John Gilchrist, Dougall 
McKallor and the Robertson family. Other early settlers were: 
George Kilmer, Dr. Andrew Proudfit, Judge Ebenezer Clark, who 
was a son of Dr. Clark of Salem, Edward Riggs, Joseph Rouse, John 
Smith, Daniel Reid, William Bishop, Adam Dings, Peter and Neal 
McEachron, also the Lester, Austin, McDougal, Patten, Clapp, Fen- 
ton, Harsha, McKalpin, McQuarrie, Lindsey, Tinkey and Gifford 
families. 

Not until after the beginning of the nineteenth century did the 
population of Argyle begin to grow with any rapidity. 

The record of the first town meeting is dated April 2, 1771, but the 
town did not receive state recognition until March 23, 1786. This 
first meeting must therefore have been called under the provisions of 
the Argyle patent. 

Following is a list of the supervisors of the town since 1771 : 

1772-1780, Duncan Campbell; 1781-82, Roger Reid; 1783, James Beatty, John 
McNaughton, Peter Fiers; 1784, Duncan McArthur, James Beatty; 1785-86, James 
Beatty, Duncan McArthur, John McKnight ; 1787, Adiel Sherwood, William Reid; 
1788-1800, William Reid; 1801, John Hay; 1802, William Reid; 1803-04, Alexander 
Cowan; 1805-06, Alexander McLangall ; 1807-1 r, Neal McConnellee; i8r2-i5. John 
Reid; 1816, Alexander Gillis; 1817-18, John Robinson ; 1819-22, William Reid; 1823- 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— ARGYLE. 417 

27, Ranson Stiles; 1828, William R. Mills; 1829, Ransom Stiles; 1830-32, Anthony 
McKallor; 1833-34, David Sill; 1S35-36, James Savage: 1837-38, Jesse S. Leigh; 1839, 
Ransom Stiles; 1840-41, Freeman Hopkins; 1842-43, John Robertson ; 1844-45, Wil- 
liam Boyd; 1846-47, James Stewart, Jr.; 1848-49, William Congdon; 1850, Archibald 
M. Rowan; 1851-52, William Clapp; 1853, Ransom Stiles; 1854, David Hall; 1855, 
Edward Riggs; 1856-57. William Lendrum; 1858-59, Alex. P. Robinson; 1860-61. 
Robert G. Hall; 1862-63, Charles G. IJarsha; 1864-66, David Hall; 1867-70, John G. 
Sill; 1871-72, George Shannon ; 1873-74, David McDougall; 187578, William Lend- 
rum; 1879, William D. Robertson; 1880 8r('li^zra H. Snyder; 1882-83, Albert Stewart; 
1884-85, Robert 3. Scott; 1886-87, David H. Stott; 1888-89, William D. Stevenson; 
1890, Robert C. McEachron; 1891-92, J. B. Conway; 1893, Albert Stewart; 1894-95, 
David Tinkey; 1896-97, Theodore Gilchrist; 1898-1900, Ezra H. Snyder, v 

The town clerks of Argyle for the same period have been: 

1772-74, Archibald Campbell; 1775-77, Edward Patterson; 1778-79, John McNeil; 
1780-84, Duncan Gilchrist; 1785, Alexander McDougall; 1786-92, John McNeil; 1793- 
96, John White, Jr.; 1797-1804, John McNeil; 1805, Edward Riggs; 1806, Peleg Bragg; 
1807-14, Anthony M. Hoffman; 1815-17, Daniel McNeil; i8i8-ig, Ransom Stiles; 1820- 
22, David McNeil; 1823-26, John Ross; 1827-28, Charles McKallor; 1829, John Ross; 
1830-32, Duncan Taylor; 1833-36, James Carl; 1837-38, Freeman Hopkins; 1839-40, 
Henry K. White; 1841-42. Lucius Cottrell; 1843-44, Archibald M. Rowan; 1845-46, 
Alexander McFadden; 1847-48, William S. Ashton; 1849-50, John C. Rouse; 1851, 
John I. Taylor; 1852, John C. Rouse; 1853-54, Alexander McFadden; 1855, George 
M. Robinson; 1856-57, Boyd Madden ; 1858-60, Andrew J, White; 1861-62, David C. 
Crawford; 1863-66, Charles W. Taylor; 1867-68. Daniel M. White; 1869-70, John E. 
Rextraw; 1871, Theodore Ross; 1872, James K. Henry; 1873-76, James W. Taylor; 
1877, Boyd Madden; 1878-82, John Wellman; 1883-84, H. A. McEachron; 1885-87, 
James Harper; 1888-90, John Armetage; 1891-95, G. M. Hall; 189G-1900, Samuel 
Guthrie. 

Like other towns of the county Argyle suffered some depopulation 
at the time of Burg-oyne's raid which scared many people into seeking 
a safe locality. In July, 1777, when Burgoyne was at Fort Edward, 
Le Loup, an Iroquois chief, left the vicinity of Salem to join him. 
In passing through the town of Argyle, this band murdered the 
family of John Allen, consisting of himself, his wife, three children, 
his wife's sister and three slaves. This atrocity so alarmed the peo- 
ple of the town that many left their homes to seek shelter tmtil the 
war was over. 

The early settlers of Argyle and their descendants were strongly 
religious, the Sabbath w^as revered and a stringent law w^as passed 
against Sabbath breaking. Besides the legitimate settlers there were 
in the early days quite a number of squatters and adventurers in the 
town and it was to hold in check the irreverant among these that this 

L 02 J 



418 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

law was passed. There was, however, slavery in the town and 
records were kept of the births of slave children. 

Some years after the settlement in Salem of Dr. Clark's colony, 
some members thereof came into Argyle and took up land. Dr. Clark 
visited these people from time to time and held religious .services and 
this was the beginning of the Presbyterian body in Argyle. The 
United Presbyterian congregation was organized in 1792, as soon as 
they had erected a church. Rev. James Proudfit of Salem officiated 
at first. In 1793 Rev. G. Mairs became the regular pastor, having 
also in his charge the Hebron congregation. This body was incor- 
porated about 1790 as the First Incorporated Congregation of Argyle. 
In 1 80 1 a new church was built and in 1845 this was supplanted by a 
more modern one, in which the congregation worshipped until 1876, 
when the present fine edifice was completed. 

The United Presbyterian church of South Argyle was organized in 
the summer of 1785 by the Rev. Thomas Beveridge, under the spread- 
ing branches of a tree. In 1788 the congregation completed their 
first rude church building. The congregation was incorporated Octo- 
ber 28, 1801. 

The second church building was erected in 1852. This congregation 
was depleted by the withdrawal of some members who formed a new 
congregation at Noith Argyle in 1830 and by the secession of others 
who formed a new society in East Greenwich in 1849. In 1858 the 
union of the Associate and the Associate Reformed churches was 
affected and at that time this church took its present name. 

In 1830 the United Presbyterian church of North Argyle was 
organized as the Associated Congregation of North Argyle. The first 
meeting was held in the school-house, but a church was erected at 
once. In 1846 this building was enlarged and improved. In 1856 
this congregation withdrew from the new Associated Presbytery of 
Cambridge and asked to be received into the old. This act hastened 
the union of the two Presbyteries, which took place in that year. In 
1866 a substantial church building was erected. 

The Reformed Presbyterian church, commonly known as the Cam- 
eronian church, existed for a time in Argyle subsequent to 1828. 

The First Presbyterian church of Argyle was organized in 1873 
under the Troy Presbytery and in 1874 their church building was 
completed. 

The following history of Methodism in Argyle, also including North 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— ARGYLE. 419 

Greenwich, is from the pen of Rev. J. W. Presby, Ph. D., and we are 
indebted to Rodney Van Wormer, Esq., for the same: 

An investigation of the origin of Methodism in this vicinity carries 
us back very nearly to the beginnings of Methodism in America. 
Late in the autumn of 1769, or aboiit the beginning of 1770, Philip 
Embury came from New York City and settled in Washington County 
about seven miles from Ashgrove. Between that date and 1773, 
Embury, in company with Barbara Heck, made an evangelistic tour 
through this region, holding meetings in almost every neighborhood. 
In what neighborhoods, or on what dates, neither records nor tradition 
now informs us; except that it is known that on this trip they went as 
far north as Hampton, where they organized the first Methodist class. 

The old Cambridge Circuit first appears in the minutes as a confer- 
ence appointment in the year 1788, with Lemuel Smith as preacher. 
Immediately after this Methodism rapidly spread over this region, 
and classes were organized in nearly every neighborhood where ten, 
or an even smaller number of Methodist people could be gathered. 
In 1789 a Methodist local preacher was residing in Argyle, as is shown 
by the obituary of Stephen Jacobs, in the minutes of 1819. The local 
preacher's name was Richard Jacobs, and his son Stephen, above 
referred to, was born in Argyle, February 23, 1789. Thus it appears, 
so far as the writer can learn, that the first preacher of any denomina- 
tion who ever resided in the town of Argyle was a Methodist preacher ; 
and the first person born in the town who became a preacher was the 
Rev. Stephen Jacobs, above referred to. 

Argyle and North Greenwich being comparatively near Ashgrove,. 
the headquarters of Methodism at that time for all the country north 
of New York City, and in the direct line of travel for the early itiner- 
ants as they went to the regions farther north, must have received 
the benefit of their ministrations very early in the history. As early 
as 1796 Argyle is mentioned on the minutes of Cambridge Circuit as 
a class and preaching place. In 1797 the circuit preachers were 
Timothy Dewey, and the eccentric Lorenzo Dow. Dow has recorded 
in his Journal (page 49) that in the latter part of November, 1798, he 
preached in Argyle, where they " had a very solemn season." 

In 1 80 1 the Presiding Elder districts were for the first time named 
in the minutes, and Cambridge Circuit appears on Pittsfield district, 
Shadrach Bostwick, Presiding Elder. Previous to 1802 there was 
only one annual conference in America ; but that year the work was. 



420 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

divided into seven conferences, viz. : Western, South Carolina, Vir- 
ginia, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, and New England Con- 
ferences. In 1803, and again in 1805, Bishop Asbury held the New 
York Conference at Ashgrove. Bishop Asbury passed through this 
region of country several times, and expressed himself as delighted 
with it. In his Journal, in speaking of this region, he says: "It is 
prettily environed with hills, a carpet of green spread beneath, and 
fields that promise abundant harvests." In 1804 Cambridge Circuit 
appears as a part of Ashgrove district, which was organized that year. 
That year, also, Greenwich, which had been set off from Argyle and 
made a separate town in 1803, appears on the records of Cambridge 
Circuit as paying "■ quarterage " for the support of the circuit preach- 
ers. About the beginning of the present century Phineas Langworthy 
and Eleazer Woodworth, with their families, settled in the town of 
Greenwich, the former on the farm now occupied by William Fisher, 
and the latter near the farm now owned by Charles Rogers. Both 
these families were devout Methodists, and Phineas Langworthy was 
a class leader and held class meetings in the school house near where 
Woodworth lived. Mrs. Maria Congdon, ninety years of age, and 
living at South Argyle. was brought up in the neighborhood where 
Eleazer Woodworth lived, and recollects the family, the old school 
house, and that meetings were held in it. In the year 1814 the third 
Quarterly Conference for Cambridge Circuit was held at Argyle, 
which was about the center of the Circuit. January 16, 18 15, the first 
Methodist Episcopal church in Argyle was organized and legally in- 
corporated. The meeting at which this was done was at the house of 
Ichabod Davis. Ichabod Davis lived on the Hartford road above 
Evansville, on the farm where Isaac Milliman lived many years, and 
which is now owned by Moses Milliman, and occupied by Peter 
Holmes. The copy of the certificate, of incorporation in the county 
clerk's office informs us that Rev. Gershom Pierce, one of the preach- 
ers on Cambridge Circuit at that time, was chosen chairman of the 
meeting, and James Thompson secretary. Joseph Allen and Ichabod 
Davis were chosen inspectors of the votes. Five trustees were elected, 
viz. : Joseph Allen, Thomas Carl, James Stewart, William F. Swift 
and John Sprague. In the year 181 6 the first Methodist church in 
the town of Greenwich was built. The exact date of the building of 
this church has not been ascertained, but Brother Stephen Newberry 
says that he has so many times heard his father and mother say that 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— ARGYLE. 421 

it was built in 1816, that he is certain that it was that year, and that 
is no doubt correct. At any rate, it is certain that the church was 
there and being- used October 20, 1818, because on that date Titus 
Hall deeded the land to the trustees, and in describing it the deed 
refers to the meeting house owned and occupied by the Methodist 
Society. This old church stood on the hill a little east of where Judson 
Edie now lives. The church is now one of Mr. Edie's barns. Titus 
Hall, who gave the land on which this church was built, was a black- 
smith, and hammered out the hinges, latch and handle for the door, 
and they may still be seen on the door of the barn. The building was 
26x36 feet, with fourteen feet posts. On the twentieth day of April, 
1818, the M. E. Church in North Greenwich was legally incorporated. 
A meeting was held for the purpose at the school house in district No. 
6. Rip Van Dam Sybrant and John Seely were chosen presiding 
officers, and John Sprague, Derastus Hanks and Phineas Langworthy 
were elected trustees. 

In April, 182 1, at a Quarterly Conference held in North Greenwich, 
a missionary society was organized, auxiliary to the Missionary So- 
ciety of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The constitution was signed 
by many, among others by John G. Taylor, a local preacher, and 
Ichabod Davis of Argyle, and Titus Hall, Jonas Somes and Lyman 
Hall of Greenwich, John G. Taylor, Ichabod Davis and Lyman Hall 
were on the board of managers. In the autumn of 1823 Lorenzo Dow 
again preached one Sunday in Argyle. He attended services at the 
L^. P. Church in the morning, and after the close of the service there 
gathered the people at the liberty pole, near where the county clerk's 
office now is, and, standing on some dry goods boxes, preached from 
Ezek. xxxiii, 11. Both Mrs. Lucy Taylor and William Clapp distinctly 
remember hearing Dow preach on this occasion, and remember the 
text. In 1832 the Troy Conference was organized, and Cambridge 
Circuit was on Troy District. January 27, 1835, Edward B. Crandall, 
and Jane, his wife, made an assignment of a lease of parsonage prop- 
erty to Thomas Haskin, Jason Langworthy and Oliver Ross, trustees 
of the Methodist Episcopal church, for $322. The following year, 
April 26, 1836, Simon Flagler and Elizabeth, his wife, who seem to 
have come into possession of a dower right to the property, for $35.72, 
gave the trustees a deed of the same parsonage property. Rev. Elijah 
B. Hubbard, one of the preachers on Cambridge Circuit, was living 
in the parsonage at this time, as the deed states in describing the 



422 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

premises. In 1837 Belcher and Argyle were taken off from Cambridge 
Circuit and constituted a separate circuit, under the name of Hebron, 
the church at Belcher being the only Methodist church in the town of 
Hebron at that time. In 1838 Greenwich was set off from Cambridge 
Circuit, and made a separate appointment. Rev. Wright Hazen was 
the preacher, and November 12 of that year he died in the triumphs 
of faith in the old parsonage at North Greenwich. Rev. David Poor, 
a supernumerary preacher who had been living at Chester, came and 
supplied the rest of the year. November 4, 1840, the trustees in 
Argyle purchased the old Dutch church which had been unoccupied 
for several years, for $368. Ransom Stiles, of whom the trustees 
purchased it, had previously bought it at sheriff's sale. Previous to 
this time meetings were held in barns, private houses, and sometimes 
in the hall of J. C. Rouse's tavern, as well as in school houses. In 
the earlier part of this period meetings were held in Thomas Carl's 
house, and in his barn when his house would not hold the congrega- 
tion. April I, 1842, the trustees sold the parsonage at North Green- 
wich for $300. The proceeds went to help pay for the new church at 
Union Village. On March 9, 1842, the North Greenwich church was. 
reincorporated. Nathaniel Rood and George Stover presided at the 
meeting, and Jonas Somes, John W. Clark and Jesse Spencer were 
elected trustees. The only year that North Greenwich appears in the 
minutes as a charge by itself was in 1850, and David Osgood was the 
preacher. In 1847, April 22, the trustees in Argyle, James Carl, 
James Pollock and Gerritt L. Miller, purchased the parsonage prop- 
erty of Ransom Stiles for $150. November 20, 1850, the church in 
Argyle was re-incorporated. James Pollock, Edward Hunt and 
Charles -C. Mack were elected trustees. In 185 1 Argyle and North 
Greenwich for the first time came together as one appointment. Wil- 
liam W. Foster was the preacher. In 1854 the appointment appears 
in the minutes as Argyle, North Greenwich and Adamsville, to be 
supplied. ''The charge was supplied that year by a local preacher 
by the name of Richard Mooney. In 1855 the preacher was Thomas 
W. Harwood, and the present church edifice at North Greenwich was 
erected at a cost of nearly $2,000. The land, one acre, including the 
dwelling house on the corner, was purchased for $450. Archibald 
Lendrum, of South Argyle, was the contractor and builder. The 
building committee was Daniel M. Barber, George Stover and William 
Reid. The success of the enterprise was largely due to the efforts of 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— ARGYLE. 423 

the faithful committee, and the zealous young pastor. The church 
was dedicated November 27, 1855. Rev. Stephen D. Brown, D. D., 
then pastor of Hudson Street M. E. church at Albany, preached the 
dedicatory sermon from Haggai ii-9, and Dr. J. E. King of Fort 
Edward preached in the evening. In 1859 W. W. Foster was ap- 
pointed to this charge for his second pastorate. During this year the 
church in Argyle was remodeled and enlarged at an expense of nearly 
two thousand dollars. From 1870 to 1875 North Greenwich went 
with Union Village, and Argyle, for the only time during its histor}^ 
was an appointment by itself. 

In the spring of 1877 Rev. John W. Shank was appointed to Argyle 
and North Greenwich, and measures were immediately taken for 
building a new church at Argyle. At the first Quarterly Conference, 
held May 26, 1877, it was voted to build a brick church. Daniel 
Baker, Charles W. Taylor and Rev. J. W. Shank, were chosen, as the 
building committee. The contracts for the building were made as 
follows: The plans and specifications were drawn by Nichols & Hal- 
cott of Albany, and cost $50.00. The carpenter work by Hall Brothers 
of Sandy Hill for $4,330; mason work, Bennett Brothers of Fort Ed- 
ward, $3,268; frescoing, George W. Bennett, of Manchester, Yt., 
$200; slating, Egery & Edwards, of Salem, N. Y., $445 ; windows, 
Belcher & Povey, of New York City, $275. The bell was made by the 
Meneely Company, of Troy, and weighs 615 pounds. The pulpit set 
was the gift of Mrs. Daniel Baker. The furnace, carpets, chairs, 
chandeliers, cushions, etc., were provided by the Ladies' Aid Society 
of the church and cost nearly nine hundred dollars. The contract 
price of the church was not over $3, 000, but the entire cost, including 
extras, and interest on the debt, until it was finally paid several years 
after, amounted to some, eleven thousand dollars. The dedicatory 
sermon was preached by Bishop Simpson, April 10, 1878. His text 
was John xvii-22. In the autumn of 1878 Rev. J. W. Shank was 
transferred to the Nebraska Conference, and Rev. Henry S. Rowe, a 
local preacher supplied the rest of the year. We have only sufficient 
space to close this outline by giving the names of the pastors from 
the beginning, with the date of their appointment. From 1788 to 
1837 Argyle and North Greenwich were included in the old Cambridge 
Circuit, and the preachers were appointed as follows: 1788, Lemv;el 
Smith; 1789, Darius Dunham; 1790, Darius Dunham and Philip 
Wager; 1791, David Valleau; 1792, John Crawford and Thomas Wool- 



424 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

sey; 1793, Joel Ketchum and Elijah Woolsey; 1794, Robert Green and 
Joseph Mitchell; 1795, Samuel Fowler and Ezekiel Canfield; 1796. 
Shadrack Bostwick, Smith Weeks and Roger Searle; 1797, Timothy 
Dewey, Eber Cowles; 1798. Timothy Dewey, Lorenzo Dow; 1799, 
Jacob Rickhow, Billy Hibbard. Three months after Conference 
Rickhow became discouraged and left the Circuit, and Henry Ryan 
took his place; 1800, Ezekiel Canfield, Ebenezer Stevens; 1801, Roger 
Searle, Ebenezer Stevens; 1802, Roger Searle; Smith Arnold; 
1803, David Brown, Luman Andrus; 1804, Elias Vanderlip, 
Phineas Cook; [805, Elijah Chichester, Nehemiah U. Tomp- 
kins; 1806, Noble W. Thomas, Nathaniel Gage; 1807, Daniel 
Brumley, Francis Brown; 1808, Mitchell B. Bull, Lewis Pease; 1809, 
Mitchell B. Bull, William Swayze and Stephen Sornborger; 18 10, 
Samuel Draper, Samuel Howe; 181 1, John Finnegan, Samuel Weaver; 
1812, Datus Ensign, Samuel Weaver; 1813, Datus Ensign, Gershom 
Pierce; 1814, Gershom Pierce, Stephen Beach ; 1815, Andrew McKain, 
Peter Busing; 1816, Andrew McKain, Jacob Hall; 18 17, Friend 
Draper, Tobias Spicer; i8i8, Tobias Spicer, vSherman Miner; 1819, 
Samuel Draper, Sherman Miner; 1820, David Lewis, Daniel I. 
Wright; 1821, David Lewis, George Smith; 1822 and 1823, Samuel 
Draper, John Lovejoy; 1824, Samuel Howe, Edward Soullard; 1825, 
Samuel Howe, Elias Crawford ; 1826 and 1827, Daniel Brayton, Henry 
Fames; 1828, Roswell Kelly, James B. Houghtaling; 1829, James B. 
Houghtaling; 1830, Roswell Kelly; 1831, Roswell Kelly, Theodosius 
Clark; 1832, Stephen Remington, Henry Smith; 1833, Joel Squires, 
John LaGrange; 1834, Joseph Fames, Bishop Isbell; 1835, Joseph 
Eames, Elijah B. Hubbard; 1836, Samuel Covel, Elijah B. Hubbard. 
From 1837 to 1850, inclusive, Argyle and Belcher went together; 
from 1837 to 1845, inclusive, under the name of Hebron, and from 
1846 to 1850 inclusive, under the name of Argyle. The following 
were the preachers: 1837, Daniel Brayton; 1838, Ezra Sprague; 1839, 
Samuel Young; 1840, William P. Gray; 1841 and 1842, William Henry; 
1843, Paul P. Atwell; 1844, Ensign Stover; 1845, Ensign Stover and 
Thomas Dodgson; 1846, William A. Miller and John L. Cook; 1847, 
Aaron Hall; 1848 and 1849, AmosOsborn; 1850, John Fassett. From 
1838 to 1850, inclusive, the preachers at North Greenwich were as 
follows: 1838, Wright Hazen; 1839, David Poor; 1840, Benjamin 
Marvin; 1841 and 1842. Elijah B. Hubbard; 1843 and 1844, Desevignia 
Starks; 1845, Clark Fuller; 1846 and 1847, Jacob Leonard ; 1848 and 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— GREENWICH. 425 

1849, Stephen L. Stillman; 1850, David Osgood. From 1851 to the 
present time the preachers at Arg-yle and North Greenwich have been 
as follows: 1851 and 1852, William W. Foster; 1853, Ward Bullard; 
1854, supplied by Richard Mooney; 1855 and 1856, Thomas W. Har- 
wood; 1857 and 1858, David Lytle; 1859, William W. Foster; i860 and 
1861, John M. Webster; 1862 and 1863, James L. Slason; 1864 and 
1865, Amos Osborn; 1866 and 1867, Peter M. Hitchcock; 1868 and 
1869, Jesse F. Craig; 1870 and 1872, Daniel Rose; 1873, Damas 
Brough; 1874 and 1876, Aaron Hall; 1877 and 1878, John W. Shank; 
1879 and 1881, Charles F. Noble; 1882 and 1884, Elam Marsh; 1885 
and 1887, John S. Bridgeford; 1888 and 1892, George H. Van Dnsen; 
1893, Joseph W. Presby; 1894 and 1896, Marcus M. Curry; 1897 and 
1900, Adam C. McGilton. 

Argyle is mainly an agricultural town and has large cheese inter- 
ests. The villages of the town are Argyle. North Argyle and South 
Argyle. The latter two are hamlets. In Argyle village there is a 
starch factory, two saw inills and a cider mill. 

The Argyle Academy was an institution long associated with the 
history of this town, although it has passed out of existence. It was 
incorporated May 4, 1841, and was equipped with a library and school 
apparatus. It was a mathematical and classical school for both sexes. 

North Argyle was at first called Stevenson's Corners after Daniel 
Stevenson, the first postmaster, in 1830. South Argyle was founded 
in 1824 and in 1874 the South Argyle Dairy Association erected its 
cheese factory there, the first one built in the county. 



TOWN OF GREENWICH. 

In primeval days what is now the town of Greenwich was covered 
with a heavy forest of hard woods and the " murmuring pines and the 
hemlocks;" and here the red man had a noble hunting ground; his 
wigwam was in the shady woods, his canoe upon the river. The 
early inhabitants found no war paths, no military trails ; in a county 
whose early history is redolent with war, its victories, defeats and 
massacres, Greenwich seems to have been an idyllic spot. 

The first known permanent settler upon this domain was a man 
named Rodgers, said to have been a lawless character, who erected a 

[08 J 



426 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

house on the flats of the Battenkill, above the mouth of Cossayuna 
creek in 1764, or perhaps a year earlier. 

Greenwich had many natural advantages to attract settlers, and 
those looking to secure patents were not slow to observe this. The 
first patent which included a part of this town was the Saratoga pat- 
ent, which was granted November 4, 1684, and which covered Easton 
and part of Greenwich on the east side of the Hudson, besides two 
towns in Saratoga county. On November 11, 1763, a grant of ten 
thousand acres of land, now included in the town of Greenwich, was 
made to Donald, George and James Campbell, their three sisters and 
four others. This land was sparsely settled during the Revolution- 
ary war. 

On May 21, 1764, the Argyle patent was granted to Laughlin Camp- 
bell and his colonists. This patent covered the portion of the town 
of Greenwich not included in the aforementioned patents, and all 
patents, except the Saratoga patent, were subject to the same condi- 
tions regarding mines and timber as the Argyle patent. 

In 1765 Alexander McNaughton, Archibald Livingstone, Duncan 
Campbell and Roger Reid settled near the Battenkill upon the Argyle 
patent and finally drove out the first settler, Rodgers, who was really 
a squatter, and in having him removed brought about the first civil 
process in the county. In 1766 Stanton Tefft, son of Judge Nathan 
Tefft, settled here, his father and brother Nathan locating in Easton. 
In 1769 Captain Foster came into the town from Rhode Island and 
about this time a settler named Bryant located at the foot of Bald 
Mountain. Other early settlers were Samuel Dickinson in 1769, 
Daniel Rose and Robert Kenyon in 1770, James Rogers 2d in 1772, 
Thoinas Bentley, David Tefft, John Rogers, Rip Van Dam Sybrant 
and his brother John, Jeremiah Newberry, Eber Crandall, Robert 
Perrigo, Francis Robinson, David Sprague, Phineas Ken3^on, John 
Edwards, Lemuel Foot, Ebenezer Woodworth and Phineas Lang- 
worthy 

Greenwich was at first within the limits of the town of Argyle, but 
in 1803 it was erected into a separate town and nained Greenwich, 
after Greenwich, R. I. It is bounded on the north by Fort Edward 
and Argyle, on the east by Salem and Jackson, on the west by Sara- 
toga county, from which it is separated by the Hudson, and on the 
south by Jackson and Easton. The surface of the town is level, 
except in the eastern part, where it breaks into high hills. The Bat- 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— GREENWICH. 427 

tenkill is the principal stream ; it rises in Vermont, and flows with a 
westerly course through this town to form its confluence with the 
Hudson. This stream has a fall of seventeen feet at Center Falls, of 
forty feet at Galesville, and of seventy feet a short distance below the 
latter place. When there is high water these cataracts assume Niag- 
ara-like proportions. Cossayuna creek, the outlet for the lake of the 
same name, flows through the eastern part of the town. Bald moun- 
tain is a notable peak in Greenwich. It stands somewhat west of the 
center of the town and rises to a height of nine hundred and twelve 
feet above the surrounding plain. The first town meeting in Green- 
wich was held in April, 1803, Robert Perrigo acting as moderator. 
John Hay was elected supervisor and Araspaces Folsom, town clerk. 
The supervisors and clerks of the town, since its organization up to 
I goo, were • 

Supervisors — 1804, Robert Kenyon ; 1805, John Hay; 1806, David Sprague; 
1S07, John Hay; 1808-09, Simon Stevens, Jr.; 1810-12, Francis Robinson; 1813, 
Jonathan Sprague; 1814-15, John Campbell; 1816, Israel Williams; 1817, Peleg 
Bragg; 181S, Seth Sprague; i8ig, Thomas McLean ; 1820, Francis Robinson; 1821, 
Joseph Boies; 1822, Thomas McLean ; 1823, Seth Sprague; 1824, Gardner Phillips ; 
1825-28, Jonathan K. Norton; 1829. Gardner Phillips; 1830-32. Jonathan K. Horton; 
1833, Moses Robinson; 1834, Jason Langworthy; 1835, Moses Robinson; 1836, Jason 
Langworthy; 1837, William Reid; 1838-39, Oliver Ross; 1840-41, Lyman Woodard; 
1842-43, Francis Robinson, Jr.; 1844-45, David S. Adams; 1846-47, Morgan Heath; 
1848, Le Roy Mowry; 1849, Orson Salisbury; 1850-51, Edwin Andrews; 1852, Simon 
Pratt; 1853-54, William Reid; 1855-58, Morgan Heath; 1859-60, Perry M. Selleck; 
1861-63, John Stewart; 1864-66, Isaac G. Parker; 1867, James C. Shaw; iS68-69> 
Monroe Conlee; 1870-71, Edgar S. Hyatt; 1872, Robert W. Lowber; 1873, George L. 
Robinson; 1874-76, Edwin Andrews; 1877-82, William Walker; 1883, Robert Hamil- 
ton; 1884, Watson N. Sprague; 1885-86, Horton A. Barber; 1887, Homer B. Bates;, 
1888, Walter N. Sprague; 1889-90, William R. Hobble; 1891-92, Adley Reynolds;, 
1893-95, Nelson Pratt; 1896-97, D. W. Read; 1898-1900, Judson Edie. 

Town Clerks— 1804-13, Araspaces Folsom; 1814-15, Israel Williams; r8i6, Aras- 
paces Folsom; 1817-21, Israel Williams; 1822-37, John Barnard; 1838-39, Edwin An- 
drews; 1840-51, John Barnard; 1852-54, William C. Allen; 1855-56, H. A. Thomp.son; 
1857, Sidney Morse; 1858-83, Edwin Wilmarth; 1884-95, C. H. Van Ness; 1896-97, 
Claude P. Bender; 1 899-1900, William A. Van Kirk. 

GREENWICH VILLAGE 

Is one of the most important business centers in Washington. 
County and has the service of both steam and electric railroads. In 
addition to its mercantile activity the village is attractive in itself as 
a place of residence and is well taken care of by its officials. Tha 



428 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

business life of the place began in 1780, when a Mr. Carbine built a 
dam across the river at this point and erected a sawmill and a small 
dwelling. He was succeeded by Job Whipple in 1791. From him the 
place derived the name of Whipple City which was supplanted by the 
name of Union Village in 1809, when the community was incorporated 
tinder that name. The corporation was partly in Greenwich and 
partly in Easton, hence the name. 

Mr. Whipple had for his assistant William Mowry and they set up 
spinning frames about the year 1800, and did an extensive business 
with families far and near. In 181 7 Mowry put in operation at Green- 
wich, the first double spinner used in America. He had previously 
gone to England, with a mechanic named Wild, and after much 
difficulty obtained an idea of such machines there. This industry was 
the foundation of the industrial life of Greenwich, and this was also 
the first attempt to manufacture cotton goods in New York state. 
About the close of the century Perry Miller began the manufacture of 
plows at Greenwich, and in 1832 Eddy, Reynolds, Langdon & Com- 
pany established a large plow works. From 1848 to 1870 the manu- 
facture of shoes was carried on and in 1862 the Battenkill Knitting 
Works were erected. In 1851 tea-tray stamping was begun and in 
1870 William Weaver embarked in the manufacture of wood-working 
machines. 

The manufactures at Greenwich at present are: the Dumbarton 
Flax Spinning Company, the Eddy Plow Company, the Van Zile 
Knitting Company and a shirt factory. 

The First National Bank of Greenwich was organized March 16, 
1 88 1, with a capital of fifty thousand dollars. Judson Edie is presi- 
dent and Thomas J. Eldridge vice-president. 

Araspaces Folsom was the pioneer merchant and opened a store in 
the year 1800. Moses Cowan and Lewis Younglove were also early 
storekeepers. Toda}' almost every branch of mercantile business is 
represented. 

The post office was established in 1800, or soon after that date, and 
John Herrington was the first postmaster. 

The name of the village was changed from Union Village to 
Greenwich in 1867 as the growth was nearly all on the Greenwich 
side of the line between that town and Easton. 

Following is the list of presidents of the village from 1809: 
1809, Job Whipple; 1810, John P. Becker; 1811, Job Whipple; 1812-13, Robert 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— GREENWICH. 429 

Monroe; 1814, E. Wells; 1815, William Mowry; 1816-17, Horace W. Bowers; 1818, 
Henry Robinson: 1819, Moses White; 1820, Edmund Rowland; 1821, William 
Mowry; 1822, Cornelius Holmes; 1823, Percy Miller; 1824-25, Moses White; 1826, 
Simon Kittle; 1827, Joseph Boies; 1828, Moses White; 1829-31, Marmaduke Whipple ; 
1832, Alexander Mosher; 1833, John Barnard; 1834, Moses White; 1835-36, Jonathan 
K. Horton; 1837, Joseph Boies; 1838, Moses White; 1839, Wendell Lansing; 1840-41, 
Moses White; 1842-43, Abraham Cornell; 1844, Moses White; 1845-46, Daniel Frost; 
1847-48, Moses White; 1849, Leonard Gibbs; 1850-51, Charles R. Ingalls; 1852-53, P. 
M. Sellecke; 1854, O. K. Rice; 1855, C. P. Johnson; 1856-57, Aaron Selleck; 1858, 
Charles J. Gunn ; 1859, Perry M. Selleck; 1860-63, Simeon M. Chubb; 1864, Rufus 
A. Lamb; 1S65-66, Simeon M. Chubb; 1867, William M. Holmes; 1868-69, Harvey 
AVilcox; 1870, William H. Norton; 1871-73, A. G. Pierce; 1874-76, Abram Reynolds; 
1877, Aaron Griffin; 1878-79, William Weaver; 1880, James H. Thompson; 1881-83, 
AV. S. Langdon; 1884, O. H. Eddy; 1885, G. J. Fenton; 1886-89, J- Sherman; 1890-91, 
W. S. Langdon; 1892 until 1898, J. C. Sherman; 1898-99, Robert Hamilton; xSgtjr 
1900, Daniel Crandall. 

The clerks of the village for the same period were : 
1809, Jonathan K. Horton; 1810. Thomas Burrows; 1811-13, J. K. Horton; 1814. 
J. Boies; 1815, C. F. Ingalls; 1816, J. Williams; 1817-19, J. Southworth; 1821-24, C. 
Lockwood; 1825, C. F. Ingalls; 1826, William Henry; 1827, Moses White; 1828, W. 
M. Norton; 1829, G. Tefft; 1830-32, J. Hemington, Jr.; 1833, William H. Mowry; 
1834, Albert Boies; 1835-36, William M. Ferine; 1837, Edwin Adams; 1838, Asa F. 
Holmes; 1839, Gilbert Bailey; 1840-42, C. R. Ingalls; 1843-44, Joseph Potter; 1845, 
O. K. Rice; 1846, Edwin Wilmarth; 1847-48, P. L. Barker; 1849-54, William C. Allen; 
1S55, Charles J. Gunn; 1856-57, Darwin W. White; 1858-66, Alanson H. Knapp; 
1867, S. L. Stillman; 1868^77, Alanson H. Knapp; 1878-84, H. C. Morhous; 1885-96, 
W. T. Liddell; 1896-98, M. S. Potter; 1899-1900, Y. V. H. Gill. 

The Baptist church at Greenwich dates back to anti-Revolutionary 
days and the year is variously given from 1767 to 1775. In 1783 the 
congregation built their first house of worship, one mile south of 
Greenwich. Elder Nathan Tanner was their first regular pastor. In 
1795 they built a second church and a third in 1866. 

The "Reformed Church of Union Village " was founded in 1807 
with Rev. Philip Duryea as pastor. They built a church in 18 10. In 
1874 they completed a splendid church building. 

The Orthodox Congregational church of Greenwich was organized 
March 15, 1837, with thirteen members, who withdrew from the Re- 
formed church because of a difference of opinion on the question of 
slavery. 

The Methodist Episcopal church was founded at North Greenwich, 
April 20. 18 18, and on April 21, 1838, a society was formed at Green- 
wich. The first church edifice was erected in 1839 and in 1870 their 



430 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

fine house of worship was dedicated. Phineas Langworthy was the 
founder of Methodism in this town. 

St. Joseph's Catholic church was organized in 1871, through the 
labors and under the direction of Father Waldron. The old Metho- 
dist Episcopal church was purchased and changed and refitted for a 
place of worship. 

St. Paul's Episcopal church was inaugurated as'a mission, and for 
some years services were held in the Congregational church. 

Greenwich Academy was established in 1836, and in 1868 was affili- 
ated with the Union Free School, but retained its individuality and 
academical departments. These two institutions make Greenwich a 
prominent local educational center. 

The village of Battenville is four miles from Greenwich, and was 
settled about 181 5 by John McLean, Pardon Tefft, Nathan Cottrell 
and others, and from the first has been a manufacturing point. The 
postoffice was established in 1829, with Daniel Anthony as the first 
postmaster. In 1872 the Phoenix Paper Company erected their mill, 
which is still running. The Methodist church here dates its his- 
tory from 1829, but the organization was not perfected until December 
2, 1833. 

Center Falls, two miles above Greenwich, was settled in 1790 by 
Smith Barber and Nathan Rogers. The Blandy Paper Company is 
located here. 

East Greenwich on the Battenkill, near the Salem line, is one of 
the oldest places in the town. The postoffice was established in 1835, 
with Moses Robinson as postmaster. The United Presbyterian church 
of East Greenwich was organized May 30, 1849, and was composed, at 
that time, of members who had withdrawn from the South Argyle 
congregation. 

Middle Falls, two miles below Greenwich, on the Battenkill, was 
settled in 1789. In 1790 A. G. Lansing built a house and mill here, 
and about 181 o John Gale put up a flour mill on the Easton side of the 
river. This place was known as Galesville until 1875, when J. H. 
Reynolds had the name of both the village and postoffie changed to 
Middle Falls. The falls on the Battenkill at this point afford unlimi- 
ted water i^ower, and several industrial plants have been operated 
here. The manufactures here at present are the Bennington Falls 
Pulp Company, tbe Bossom Manufacturing Company, Washington 
Mills and the Mohican Pulp and Paper Company. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT EDWARD. 431 

Clarks Mills lies at the first point of water power on the Battenkill, 
above its junction with the Hudson, and dates its first settlement far 
back. It is a prosperous hamlet. 

North Greenwich lies on the Arg-yle line, and was formerly known 
as Reid's Corners, from William Reid, an early settler there. It was 
settled in 1800 and had a postoffie in 1825, William Reid being- the 
postmaster. The Methodist Episcopal church here was organized 
April 20, 1818. 

The village of Lake lies nine miles northeast of Greenwich and is a 
place of some manufactnring importance. It was settled about 1780. 
The postoffice was opened in 1840 and R. W. Richey was the first 
postmaster. 

The village of Bald Mountain lies at the base of the mountain of the 
same name. In 1852 Robert W. Lowber purchased the various lime 
quarries, built sixty houses and established the village. In 1872 the 
Bald Mountain Lime Company bought out Mr. Lowber's plant and 
allowed the work in the quarries to fall off, as they had other works 
producing their complement of lime. 



TOWN OF FORT EDWARD. 

The first material of interest respecting the historj^ of Fort Edward 
is of a period prior to that of the earliest settlements in Washington 
County. We do not hear the frontiersman's axe sounding the prom- 
ise of settlement and peaceful habitation ; we hear the beat of drums 
by day and the report of the sentinel's ready musket by night-^echoes 
from the far-distant battlefields of the older countries. All western 
Europe had taken up arms against Louis XIV and as England was at 
war with France, Englishmen fought Frenchmen wherever they 
chanced to meet. 

The earliest important event in the western hemisphere of the uni- 
versal war against Louis XIV, known in American history as King 
William's War, was the surprise and destruction of Schenectady by 
three bands of French and Indians, early in Februar3\ 1690. The 
colonists of New York and Connecticut determined to retaliate, and 
the following July an expedition under Fitz John Winthrop, consist- 
ing of about five hundred white men and one hundred and eighty-five 
Indians started northward toward Montreal bv wav of the Hudson. 



432 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

They, crossed to the east side of the river at Fort Miller and proceeded 
partly in canoes and partly afoot to Fort Edward where they shouldered 
their boats and carried them to the forks of Wood Creek, now Fort 
Ann. This was a trail which had been traversed by the Indians 
alreadj^ perhaps for centuries, and which was destined in the years of 
colonial warfare which terminated in the Revolution, to serve again 
and again as the route of armies passing north and south. A small 
division of General Winthrop's command pushed on to the north end 
of Lake Champlain, continued to La Prairie, inflicted what damage 
they could upon the French, and returned to the Hudson by the same 
route they had followed in their advance. The whole expedition was 
hopelessly deficient in every respect and little could have been 
expected of it by any one who knew the conditions. 

But these details are beyond the scope of this outline of Fort Ed- 
ward's history. We have told the story so far as Fort Edward is 
concerned when we have said that the Winthrop expedition in the 
summer of 1690, twice passed over land now included in the town- 
ship. The next year a still feebler body of men under Major Peter 
Schuyler exactly repeated the program, and in the winter of 1693 the 
borders of the township were skirted by the two Schuylers leading a 
force against some six hundred Canadians and Hurons who had been 
sent against the Mohawks and were already retreating northward. 

Peace was declared in 1697, but it was of short duration and in 1702 
the French and English were again in the field against each other, in 
both Europe and America. The famous old war trail with the portage 
from Fort Edward to Fort Ann, was probably often traversed during 
the early years of the war but no important expedition took that route 
until 1709 when General Francis Nicholson in command of some 
fifteen hundred colonials from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut 
and Pennsylvania moved north by way of the Hudson and Lake 
Champlain, expecting to meet at the St. Lawrence a large force, pro- 
ceeding by water from Boston, against Quebec. Col. Peter Schuyler 
was sent with a detachment in advance of the main army to build 
roads, stockades, forts, etc., and to construct canoes and bateaux. In 
passing through the township of Fort Edward he built the road up the 
east shore of the Hudson, erected a stockade at Fort Miller and con- 
structed a fort at Fort Edward which he named Fort Nicholson. 
When the main body followed. Fort Nicholson was garrisoned by four 
hundred and fifty men who remained at this post imtil late in the 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT EDWARD. 433 

following; autumn, when General Nicholson, having vainly awaited 
action by the fleet against Quebec and having contended with much 
sickness in his camps, withdrew to the south destroying all the forts 
north to Fort Saraghtoga. In ryii General Nicholson led a larger 
force northward, but he had gone no further than Fort Ann when he 
learned that the British fleet, intended to operate against Quebec, had 
been shattered at sea. The force accordingly returned to Albany and 
was there disbanded. 

Some twenty or thirty years after Fort Nicholson had been thus 
razed and abandoned by its constructors, Colonel John Henry Lydius 
came down from Montreal, built a roughly fortified house on the site 
of Fort Nicholson and began an extensive and lucrative trade with 
the Indians. Colonel Lydius was the son of the Rev. John Lydius, 
who succeeded the Rev. Godfredius Dellius, both as pastor of the 
Dutch church at Albany and as claimant to the Dellius patent, one of 
the most extraordinary grants of lands ever recorded by the colonial 
authorities. It was to take possession of a tract of land embracing 
more than half of Washington County, all of Warren and a large part 
of Essex County, that Colonel Lidius established himself on the site 
of Fort Nicholson. 

Back in 1696 the governor of New York had, for a quit-rent of one 
raccoon skin per year, granted Dellius a tract of land on the east side 
of the Hudson twelve miles wide from the Battenkill north w^ard until 
the east line struck Wood Creek, thence the patent occupied all the 
land between the Hudson on the west and Wood Creek and Lake 
Champlain on the east up to a point some ninety miles north of the 
Battenkill — a territory of over two thousand square miles. Dellius 
claimed to have bought the land previously from the Indians. In 
1698 the Legislature repented of its generosity and annulled the 
patent ; Dellius, however, contended that such action was not statu- 
tory and on returning to Holland, transferred his claim to the Rev. 
John Lydius, father of the Colonel John Lydius whom we find estab- 
lished upon the ground and contending that his title is just. But 
however just his claim Colonel Lydius did not long maintain his trad- 
ing outpost. War again broke out in 1744 between Great Britain and 
France. The succeeding year a French partisan officer named Marin 
came down from Canada with a band of French and Indians, and 
attacked the English settlements along the Hudson. Colonel Lydius' 

I •'■'4 J 



434 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

establishment was the first to fall a victim to the raid and the Colonel 
and his son were finally carried off to Canada. 

The town of Fort Edward lies on the western side of Washington 
County. It is bounded on the north by Kingsbury, on the east by 
Argyle, on the south by Greenwich, while it is separated from Sara- 
toga County, on the west, by the Hudson river. Along the river 
there is an extent of level land, but the town is hilly toward the east. 
Besides the Hudson, the Moses Kill also runs through the town. The 
Champlain Canal also traverses the town from end to end, while the 
line of the Delaware & Hudson Railroad cuts diagonally across the 
northwestern corner. 

There are five large islands in the Moses Kill near the village of 
Fort Edward. 

The territory comprising the present town of Fort Edward was part 
of the remarkable grant of land to which we have referred and upon 
which Colonel Lydius settled by establishing a trading post where 
Fort Edward village now stands. 

In 1755 this locality again became the scene of warfare. The "Old 
French War" had broken out in 1754, and in 1755 General William 
Johnson planned the expedition against Crown Point, already noticed 
in this history. In July of that year Johnson's advance guard under 
General Phineas Lyman erected a fortification upon the site of Fort 
Nicholson. It was a quadrangular fort, constructed of earth and tim- 
ber and provided with ramparts twenty-two feet thick and sixteen 
feet high. Six guns could be mounted upon the works and the fort 
was regularly equipped with a magazine, storehouse and hospital. 
This fort was named Fort Lyman, but General Johnson subsequently 
re-christened it, giving it the name of Fort Edward, in honor of 
Edward, Duke of York, brother of George III. From this fort the 
future village and town took their names. 

This was the strongest fort in all the northern part of the country 
at that time and as a consequence became a point of leading impor- 
tance in the military movements and operations of the next quarter 
of a century. 

The fort stood on the point of land now bounded on the north by 
Edward street, on the south by the creek, on the east by Broadway 
and Montgomery streets and on the west by the Hudson river. There 
are but few traces of the earthworks remaining and these quite faint; 
some slight depressions, some barely noticeable traces of embank- 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT EDWARD. 435 

■ments. The venerable cottonwood tree which for so long a time — 
some say more than a century — stood nearby has disappeared and 
only a stiimp of it remains. 

In the general history of the county have been recounted at length 
all the military operations about Fort Edward — the operations of 
Winslow's army, the failure of Webb, the exploits of Abercrombie 
and Amherst. 

Soon after the last French war settlers began to come into this 
town. Of these Nathaniel Gage is generally accorded the priority. 
He settled where the village of Fort Edward now stands in 1762. He 
was followed by Patrick Smith and James Smith in 1764. In 1765 
Patrick Smith built a house which became historic and which is still 
standing. This house was considered large at that day and when the 
frame was being erected it was necessary to send as far as Salem to 
obtain help to raise it. The house was subsequently the headquarters 
of Schuyler and of Burgoyne. It stands on Broadway and was long 
known as the old Fort house, from Colonel Fort who lived in it years 
ago. He built over and increased the size of the building. It now 
belongs to the Dr. Linnendoll estate. 

The Argyle grant of May 21, 1764 included, in ten of its lots, the 
town of Fort Edward. The numbers of these lots and the persons to 
whom they were alloted are as follows: 

No. 128, Duncan Shaw; 129, Alex. McDougall; 134, John McArthur;. 
135, John Mclntyre; 136, Catherine Mcllfender; 137, Mary Hammel; 
138, Duncan Gilchrist; 139, John Mclntyre; 140, Mary McLeod; 141, 
David Torrey. 

These lots varied in extent from two hundred and fifty to five hun- 
dred acres and most of the grantees occupied this land immediately. 

Among the other early settlers were Noah Payne who settled at Fort 
Miller in 1766 and was followed by Levi Crocker and Timothy Buel. 
James Durkee from Woodbury, Conn., settled in the eastern part of 
the town and was the progenitor of the numerous Durkee family in 
this localit3^ 

The first court held in the county (then Charlotte) was held in Fort 
Edward at the house of Patrick Smith, October 19, 1773. The last 
court under English sovereignty was also held at this place June 20, 

1775- 

During the Revolution Fort Edward was one of the principal 
theatres of the war, but this has alreadv been fullv treated of in the 



U 



436 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

general history, as also the pathetic history of Jane McCrea, for which 
see Chapter XV. 

The terrors of the war drove many of the settlers of Fort Edward 
from their homes, but after peace had been restored there was a large 
influx. Among these are the names of Peleg Bragg, Thomas Lamb, 
John Beers, A. Meacham, Thomas Carpenter, Jesse Patrick, Garret 
Viele, Simeon Taylor, Cyrus Adams, John McAdon, Philip Yiele and 
Archibald Patrick. 

By an act of Legislature dated April lo, 1818, Fort Edward was set 
off from the town of Argyle and erected into a town with its present 
limits. The first town meeting was held May 22, 18 18. 

Following is the list of town supervisors since that date : 
1818, Moses Carey; 1819-29, Timoth)- Eddy; 1830-32, James Mclntyre; 1S33, 
Timothy Eddy; 1834-36, Piatt C. Viele; 1837, Milton E. Shaw; 1838-39, William S. 
Norton; 1840, Milton E. Shaw; 1841, James Stephenson; 1S42, Charles Harris; 1843, 
Abraham I. Fort; 1844. Milton E. Shaw; 1845, William Forbes; 1846. Charles Harris; 
1847, James Stephenson; 1848, Abraham I. Fort; 1849, William S. Norton; 1850, 
Charles Harris ; 1851-52, Isaac M. Guy; 1853, George H. Taylor; 1854-55, Caleb 
Wells; 1856, George Satterlee ; 1857, Fletcher Coleman; 1859, James Cheeseman; 
i860, George B. Mosher; 1861-62, Solomon R. Durkee; 1863-71, Melvin A. Nash; 
1872, David Underwood ; 1873-75, Michael Mory; 1876-77, Edgar Hull; 1878, George 
Satterlee; 1879, Edgar Hull; i88o-Sr, Asahel R. Wing; 1882, Ransom Qua; 1883, 
Michael Mory; 1884, Ransom Qua; 1885-87, Lansing M. Howland; 1888-91, William 
H. Tilford: 1892-95, Townsend W. Potter; 1896-98, Lansing M. Howland; 1899-1900, 
John J. Morgan. 

The town clerks for the same period were : 

1818, Walter Rogers; 1819-21, John Crocker; 1822-26, Samuel T. Shepherd; 1827, 
Timothy Stoughton; 1828-29, Daniel T. Payn; 1830-32, John C. Viele; 1833, Timothy 
Stoughton; 1834-36, Milton E. Shaw; 1837, Joseph Stewart; 1838, Daniel T. Payn; 
.1839, Samuel Bennett; 1840, Nicholas Rogers; 1841, Edward Washbin-n ; 1842, 
Nicholas Rogers ; 1843, Thomas McCollum ; 1844, Merritt Sprague; 1845, Warren 
Sprague; 1846, Timothy Stoughton; 1847-49, George M. Sanders; 1850, A. D. Wait; 
1851, John Parry; 1852. Bradley S. Bennett; 1853-54, James S. Bell; 1855, Timothy 
Stoughton; 1856, Fletcher Coleman ; 1857, Lemuel C. Holmes; 1858-60, Bradley S. 
Bennett; 1861-62, Russell AV. Pratt; 1863-65, Bradley S. Bennett; 1866-71, J. H. 
Cheeseman; 1872, David H. King; 1873-76, Russell W. Pratt; 1877-78. Aaron B. 
Cole; 1879, James H. Cheeseman; 1880, Levi H. Wing; 1881-83, James H. Cheese- 
man; 1884, Levi H. Wing; 1885, James H. Cheeseman; 1886-87, Levi H. Wing; 
1888-89, John D. Wilson; 1890-92, George C. Beverly; 1892-1901, George Scott. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT EDWARD. 437 



THE VILLAGE OF FORT EDWARD 

Is the principal community in this town. John Eddy was 
the principal land-owner in early days, where this village 
stands, but William Finn also held a large amount of property in the 
vicinity of the old fort. He and James Rogers were early merchants 
at this place. Dr. Willoughby was the first practicing physician and 
Matthias Ogden was the first lawyer. 

The Cham plain Canal was opened from Fort Edward to Whitehall 
in 1822. In 1828 it was opened along the bank of the river to Fort 
Miller. Previously boats had been floated between these points on 
the " slack water " of the Hudson. In the same year the first bridge 
across the Hudson, connecting Fort Edward with the Saratoga side, 
was built. In 1848 the Saratoga and Washington Railroad was opened 
to Fort Edward. 

The village of Fort Edward was incorporated August 28, 1849. 
There are no records of elections or civic proceedings for the years 
1854-55-56, and on February 26, 1857, an act was passed by the state 
Legislature " to revive, amend and continue the charter of the village 
of Fort Edward." The corporate powers of the village were accord- 
ingly restored. Following are the names of the presidents of the 
village up to the close of the nineteenth century : 

1849, Frederick D. Hodgman; 1S50, A. Dallas Wait; 1S51. Russell Hitchcock; 
1852, Daniel Carswell; 1853, Edwin Crane; 1857-58, A-. Dallas Wait; 1859-60, James 
L. Reynolds; 1861-62, Edwin B. Nash; 1863-64, George Satterlee ; 1865-66, Edwin B. 
Nash; 1867, Peter Rozell; 1868, Caleb Wells; 1869-70, Edwin B. Nash; 1S71, Edgar 
DeForest; 1872. H. W. Stoughton; 1873, James L. Reynolds; 1874, John A. Russell; 
1875, George Satterlee; 1876, David Underwood; 1877, George Satterlee; 1878-79, 
John F. Harris; 1880, George Satterlee; 1881, Sol R. Durkee; 1882-83, Caleb Wells; 
1884-S5-86. George Satterlee: 1887, James Mickle; 1888-S9, Joseph Goodfellow; 1890, 
A. V. Pratt; 1891, John F. Harris; 1892-93, John R. Durkee; 1894, C. W. Bowtell ; 
1895, John F. Harris; 1896-7, John J. Morgan; 189S, L. H. Wing; 1899, R. A. Lin- 
nendoll ; 1900, George C. Beverly. 

Following were the village clerks of Fort Edward : 
1877-80, James H. Cheeseman; 18&1. E. P. Selby; 1882, Fred A. Bratt; 1883-84, 
Fred.H. Wells; 1885-86, George W. Satterlee; 18S7-92, M. J. Bennett; 1893, W. A. 
Taj-lor; 1894, Willard Robinson ; 1895-96, Merion Mills; 1897, Fred H. Wells; 1898- 
99, J. B. North; 1900, John W. Burns. 

The first manufacturing carried on at Fort Edward was by Timothy 
Eddy, who erected and conducted a cloth mill. This mill passed 



438 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

throug-h the hands of successive owners and finally became the pio- 
neer paper mill in this locality, when in it Enos and Gardner How- 
land began , the manufacture of coarse papers. This mill was long 
supplied with power from the old feeder, which had absorbed the 
small stream upon which it was built, and went out of existence 
when the old feeder was purchased from the state. The first sawmill 
was erected at the feeder dam by M. Wheeler and J. Martin, about 
1822. The first gristmill in Fort Edward was built about 1824 by D. 
W. Wing, S. B. Cook and John Mclntyre. In 1845 a number of the 
business men of Fort Edward united and became incorporated as the 
Fort Edward Manufacturing Company, their object being- to promote 
manufacturing in the village. They purchased the old feeder and 
dam and along there with ten acres of land contiguous thereto, for the 
purpose of establishing mill sites. Various industries have been estab- 
lished here, some of which have gone out of existence, from one cause 
or another. The principal industries now in operation are the Inter- 
national Paper Company, the Shirt and Waist factory of C. N. Davis, 
the Fort Edward Brewing Company, and Helfinger Brothers' Pottery ; 
all of which receive extended notice in another part of this work. 

About the year 1800 an aqueduct was constructed for the purpose 
of supplying the village with water. On April 10, 1845, the Fort 
Edward Water Works Company was incorporated, and in 1893 the 
present fine system of water works was put in. The fire companies 
are the Satterlee Hose Company, the Bibby Hose Company and the 
J. R. Durkee Hose Company. The village has also an efficient fire 
engine. The fire department is a source of pride to the village and 
many of the best citizens are identified with it. 

The national bank of Fort Edward was organized in 185 1, as the 
Bank of Fort Edward, and assumed its present name in 1865. It is 
the only bank in the village, but has the strength and the facilities to 
handle a large amount of business. 

The Fort Edward postoffice v/as opened in 1800 and James Rogers 
was the first postmaster. 

Fort Edward is connected with Glens Falls and Sandy Hill by the 
Glens Falls, Sandy Hill and Fort Edward Street Railroad, a trolley 
line, and also with Greenwich, Schuylerville, Troy and Albany by 
trolley. The latter connection was made in 1900, but the Glens Falls, 
Sandy Hill and Fort Edward Railroad was built in 1885, and was 
changed from horsepower to an electric road in 1891. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT EDWARD. 439 

The earliest church history of Fort Edward is associated with Meth- 
odism. About 1780 Methodist classes were formed within a large 
radius of Cambridg-e, throug-h the efforts of Rev. Lemuel Smith. 
These classes were attached to the nearest appointment, and the 
preacher visited them occasionally. One of these classes was formed 
at Fort Edvvard. But it was many years — not until 1828 — that a reg;- 
ular church organization was formed. This was consummated by 
Rev. Julius Field, of Glens Falls, and the congregation was organized 
as a Methodist Episcopal church. In 1829 they erected a church 
building, which is now owned and occupied by the Catholic congrega- 
tion. In 1853 they built another church. The present pastor is Rev. 
J. H. Clark. 

The First Presbyterian church at Fort Edward came into existence 
some time prior to 1830, and not earlier than 1820, under the Rev. R. 
K. Rodgers. This organization, for some reason, did not prosper and on 
July 17, 1854, the present church society was formed, under the charge 
of Rev. Edward E. Seelye, D.^D., of Sandy Hill. In 1870 their church 
building was completed. Rev. C. D. Kellogg is the present pastor. 

The Baptist church at Fort Edward village began with a meeting of 
fourteen persons on March 17, 1842, and organized a Baptist 
society under the direction of Elder B. F. Garfield. The first regular 
pastor was Rev. Solomon Gale. They began a church edifice in 185 1, 
which was completed in 1852. The present pastor is Rev. I. C. Forte. 

The Baptist church at Durkeetown, in the eastern part of the town, 
was organized April 4, 1832, but this congregation dates its existence 
thirty years prior to that date. In early years they met in barns and 
private houses, and before they had a church building, in school 
houses. Their church edifice was erected in 1837. 

The parish of St. James' church (Episcopal) in Fort Edward, was 
organized in December, 1844. The congregation had been worship- 
ing for some years in the old Union Church. In 1845 the corner 
stone of their church was laid, but the building was not completed 
until 1848. Rev. Ernest Melville is the present pastor. 

St. Joseph's Catholic church at Fort Edward was organized in 
1869, when about three hundred families, who had been worshiping 
at Sandy Hill, purchased the East street Methodist church and 
repaired and refitted it throughout. The first pastor was Rev. James 
McGee. In the year 1899, and under the direction of the present pas- 



\ 



440 AVASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

tor. Rev. M. J. Griffith, D.D., the church building- was further 
improved. 

Fort Edward was one of the first villages in the state to organize a 
Union free school, when in 1848 action was taken looking toward the 
erection of a union school building, which was completed in 1849, at 
a cost of $13,000. In 1854 the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute was 
built, and the Seminary street school was erected in 1868. The Col- 
legiate Institute was burned in 1877. 

Dr. King's school for young ladies is a highly efficient and admir- 
ably conducted institution. 

The village of Fort Miller recived its name from the fortifications 
on the west side of the Hudson and opposite the site of the village. 
These were constructed by Colonel Miller. The credit for the early 
development of this place is given to Judge William Duer, whose 
influence brought manv settlers. He purchased a tract of land, 
including the falls, in 1768. and put up a gristmill. Afterwards he 
put up snuff mills and a powder mill. 

In 1865 the paper mill was started, which is still running and doing 
a large business. It is operated by the Fort Miller Pulp and Paper 
Company. 

The pioneer stores at Fort Miller were those of Ashbel Meacham, 
Jesse Patrick and Thomas Carpenter. The postoffice was established 
in 181 5. S. G. Bragg was the first postmaster. 

In 1822 the Reformed church at Fort Miller was organized, with 
Rev. Philip Duryea as pastor. 

The Fort Miller Presbyterian church was organized September 6, 
1853, with Rev. A. G. Cochrane as pastor, but it became extinct 
in 1868. 

The Baptist church at Fort Miller was organized in 1858, as a branch 
of the Fort Edward church. Their church edifice was erected in 1868. 

In 1872 Fort Edward and Sandy Hill agreed to give twenty-five 
acres of ground, lying between the two villages, and $2500, to the 
Washington County Agricultural Society, upon condition that the 
society would hold its fairs upon this ground for ten years. . The pro- 
position was accepted and the fairs have since been held at the fine 
grounds so munficently provided by these enterprising villages. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— HARTFORD. 441 



TOWN OF HARTFORD. 

This town lies in the center of Washington county, from east to 
west, and slightly north of the center from north to south. It was 
setoff from the town of Fort Ann March 12, 1793, and received its 
name from Hartford, Connecticut, because not a few of its settlers 
were from that locality. It is bounded on the west by Kingsbury, on 
the south by Argyle, on the east by Granville and Hebron, and on the 
north by Fort Ann. Its area is about 27,500 acres. The surface is 
rolling, rising into hills in the southeast and northwest. The soil is 
generally fertile. In the southern part of the town there is a swamp 
which extends into Argyle and which is said to produce peat. The 
town is watered by East Creek and its tributaries; its waters flow into 
Wood Creek, and thence into Lake Champlain. 

The town of Hartford embraces what was originally known as the 
Provincial Patent, which was granted to twenty-six officers of the 
New York Infantry, May 2, 1 764. This patent was surveyed in the fall 
of the same year, under the direction of Archibald Campbell, surveyor 
for the colony, and was laid out in one himdred and four lots, of three 
hundred acres each, more or less. Some of the grantees never claimed 
their land, and their lots were pre-empted by squatters. Indeed, 
although the patent was dated in 1764, there is no evidence that there 
was any settlement tmtil after the beginning of the Revolutionary 
war. The strongest evidence seems to indicate that the first settler 
in the town was Col. John Buck, a Revolutionary soldier, who came 
from Connecticut and settled on lot 31. Closely following Col. Buck 
came Manning Bull, Thomas Thompson, Stephen, Laban and Wanton 
Bump. This family settled in the east part of the town. About this 
time also came Edward and John Ingalls. In 1782 Aaron and Eber 
Ingalsbe settled on lot 87. Aaron Ingalsbe was the progenitor of the 
Ingalsbe family, one of the most prominent in Washington county. 
In the same year Nathan, Samuel and Joseph Taylor came from Mas- 
sachusetts and settled in the town. Ebenezer Smith, Timothy Stock- 
ing and John Paine settled herein 1784. Other early settlers were 
Nathaniel Bull, David Austin, Jabez Norton, Richard Norton, Abra- 
ham Downs, Samuel Downs, John H. Kincaid, Ezekiel Goodell, Daniel 
Mason, Daniel Brown, Rev. Amasa Brown, Jonathan Cable. A phy- 
sician. Dr. Isaac W. Clary, was in the town prior to 1800. About the 

[55 J 



442 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

same time came Calvin Townsend, Daniel Baker and George Gilson. 

This town settled up rapidly, compared with many other towns of 
the county, and its pioneers were mostly poor men who had little cap- 
ital, besides their axes and strong arms. But the terrors of the Revo- 
lutionary war, and the earlier struggles, had all passed before its 
settlement began, and there were no deteriorating circumstances to 
check settlement and progress. 

The first town meeting was held April i, 1794, at the house of 
Daniel Mason, who acted as moderator, and the first municipal oiftcers 
for Hartford were there elected. By-laws relating to various public 
affairs were also passed at this meeting. 

Following is the complete list of the supervisors and town clerks of 
the town since that date : 

Supervisors — 1795, Daniel Mason; 1796-99, Asahel Hodge ; 1800-01, David Aus- 
tin; 1802-03, Aaron Norton; 1804-09, Jonathan Wood; 1810-11, David Austin; 1S12- 
17, Jonathan Wood; 1818, Samuel Downs; 1819, Jonathan ''Wood; 1820, Samuel 
Downs; 1S21, David Austin; 1822, Samuel Downs; 1823-24. Archibald Hay; 1825-30, 
Slade D. Brown ; 1831, Richard Sill; 1832-33, Russell Smith ; 1834, Zachariah Sill ; 
1835, Robert Morrison ; 1836-37, George Chandler; 183S-41, Robert Morrison; 1842, 
George Chandler; 1843-44, Daniel M. Brown; 1845-46, William E. Congdon; 1847-48, 
Caleb Brayton ; 1849-51, John P.VWood; 1852-53. Samuel D. Kidder; 1854, John P. 
Wood; 1855, Daniel Mason; 1856-57, James N. Northup; 1858-60, Edward Sill; 1861- 
62, Russell C. Davis; 1863-65, Milo Ingalsbe ; 1866-68, John F. Whitemore; 1869-71, 
Andrew D. Rowe; 1872-73, David Hall; 1874-77, John E. Goodman: 1878-80, Alexan- 
der Gourley; 1881-82, Thomas Gilchrist; 1883-88, Lorenzo H. Hills; 1889, O. C. 
Baker; 1890-91, Albert M. Martin; 1892, Marvin C. Townsend; 1893-1900, John W. 
Arnold. 

Town Clerks — 1790, Asahel Hodge; 1796-98, Nathaniel Bull ; 1799, David Aus- 
tin; 1800-1808, Asahel Hodge; 1809-13, Samuel Gordon; 1814, David Austin; 1815-16, 
Samuel Gordon; 1817, David Austin; 1818-1820, David Doane, Jr.; 1821-23, Joseph 
Harris; 1824-27, Thomas McConnell; 1828, Calvin L. Parker; 1829-30, William Dorr; 
1831-32, Ebenezer Lord; 1833, Alanson Allen ; 1834-35. William P.Allen; 1836-37, 
John Carlisle ; 1838, Samuel N. Harris; 1839-41, Richard Sill, Jr.; 1842-44, Samuel 
Gordon; 1845, David D. Cole; 1846-48, Ira A. Perrin ; 1849-50, M. N. McDonald; 
1851, Ira A. Perrin; 1852, John Norton; 1853, John Strow; 1854, Daniel Mason; 1855, 
Frederick T. Bump; 1856, Ransom Clark; 1S57, John Perry; 1858, William P. 
Sweet; 1S59, Charles D. Higley; i860, William Park; 1861, M. N. McDonald; 1862, 
Edward B. Doane; 1863, M. N. McDonald; 1864-65, John Norton; 1866-69, Rufus H. 
Waller; 1870-71, Samuel C. Downs; 1873, John Brayton; 1874-75, Henry C. Miller; 
1876-82, Samuel C. Downs; 1883, Joel E. Woodard; 1884, William H. Ward, Jr.; 
1885-86, Edgar C. Boyd; 1887-88, John W. Arnold; 1889-90, Samuel C. Downs; 1891, 
Elmer E. Barber; 1892-93, B. H. Brayton; 1S94-95, Samuel C. Downs; 1896-9S, John 
B. Palmer; 1899-1900, W. E. Townsend. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— HARTFORD. 443 

The principal agricultural products of the town are potatoes and 
corn, of which about 50,000 bushels of each are produced annually. 
Dairying is also an important part of town's husbandry, and there are 
cheese factories at East Hartford, vSouth Hartfoi d and in the western 
part of the town. 

The principal centers of this town are Hartford, South Hartford 
and East Hartford. The village of Hartford, once known as North 
Hartford, lies in the central eastern part of the town. DeWitt Clinton 
once owned a block of land here, part of which is within the limits of 
Hartford village. This is the largest and most important village in 
the town, » and is a business center of considerable importance. It is 
finely situated on elevated ground, surrounded by attractive scenery, 
and is drained by a branch of East Creek. Various manufactories have 
existed here, but mercantile business has prospered most. The first 
store was opened by Col. John Buck and Aaron Norton. John Hamel 
and Samuel Harris were also early merchants. The postoffice was 
established in 1807, with Aaron Norton as the first postmaster. 

The Baptist Church was organized in this village about the year 
1787, the first meeting being held in a barn, which stood not far from 
the site of the present church. Amasa Brown was the first pastor. A 
notable incident in the life of this church occurred in 1830, when the 
church took extreme groiinds against masonry, and eighty of its mem- 
bers withdrew and formed a separate society, known as the South 
Baptist Church. In 1843 the breach was healed and the two congre- 
gations united amicably. The Baptists have a fine church edifice, the 
bell of which was donated by the late James M. Northup. The lot 
upon which the church stands was donated for that purpose by DeWitt 
Clinton. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church at Hartford was regularly organ- 
ized in 1844, and purchased the lower Baptist church for their place 
of worship. 

The Hartford Academy was established in 1865, and continued for 
about twenty years, since which time it has not been in operation. 

The masonic lodge here, Herschel Lodge No. 89 F. & A. M., is the 
fraternal home of the Hartford masons. 

South Hartford lies about two miles to the southwest of the village 
of Hartford, and is a thriving village. East Hartford is a hamlet in 
the eastern part of the town, and its site is notable as being the local- 
itv of some of the earliest settlers. 



444 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The First Congregational Church of Hartford was regularly organ- 
ized September i8, 1810, but the congregation existed for years pre- 
vious to that date. They built a church in 1805, but between 1810 
and 1830 no church records seem to exist. In 1865 the church had 
declined, but the few members who were left infused new life into 
the society, and with good results. Their church edifice is at South 
Hartford. 

TOWN OF HAMPTON. 

This town was called Greenfield by the early settlers, but was 
organized, under its present name, by an act of Legislature March 3, 
1786. It is bounded on the north and east by the state of Vermont, 
on the west by Whitehall and on the south by Granville. It is small 
in area compared with most of the other towns of the county, contain- 
ing 12,664 acres. In shape it is long and narrow, its length extend- 
ing from north to south, and it forms the northeastern point of the 
county from Lake Champlain. The western part of the town is moun- 
tainous and the eastern part is diversified by hills and fertile valleys. 

Hampton seems to lack the legendary Indian history of other parts 
of the county, and, owing to its location, was not an active theatre of 
war in either the Revohition or the French and Indian War. 

Hampton is made. up of different patents, the northern part contain- 
ing about two thousand acres of "Skene's Little Patent" while the 
remainder is made up of patents granted to British officers after the 
French and Indian War. The history of the land patents indicates 
that army officers seem to have been able to secure grants of land 
more easily than other men. 

The first settlers came into Hampton about 1781 and were mainly 
from Massachusetts and Connecticut. Prominent among those from 
Massachusetts were Colonel Gideon Warner, Captain Benjamin C. 
Owen, Jason Kellogg. Leading settlers froin Connecticut were 
Abiather Millard, Rufus Hotchkiss and Colonel Pliny Adams. Also 
among the early settlers of whom there is record were : Ashahel Web- 
ster, William Morris, Elisha Kilbourne, Enoch Wright, Samuel 
Waterhouse, Samuel Hooker, William Miller, Squire Samuel Beaman, 
Major Peter P. French, Mason Hulett and Squire Jason Kellogg. 

The town of Hampton was created by an act of Legislature March 
3, 1786, and the first town meeting was held May 2d of that year at the 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS—HAMPTON. 445 

school house near the residence of Colonel Gideon Warner. Cap- 
tain Lemuel Hyde and John Howe were elected the first supervisors 
with James Kellogg as clerk. 

Following is the list of supervisors and town clerks of the town 
from that date : 

Supervisors — 1786, John Howe; 1786-87, Lemuel Hyde; 178S-S9. Gideon Warner; 
1790-91. John Howe; 1792, Peter P. French; 1793, John Howe; 1794-95, Peter P. 
French; 1796, Samuel Beaman; 1797-98, Jason Kellogg; 1799-1801, Pliny Adams; 
1802-05, Jason Kellogg; 1S06-08, Samuel Hooker; 1809, Pliny Adams; i8ro-ii, Sam- 
uel Hooker; 1812, Jason Kellogg; 1813-14, Samuel Hooker; 1815, Jason Kellogg; 
1816-17, Beriah Rogers; 1818-20, Silas D. Kellogg; 1821, William Miller; 1822, Silas 
D. Kellogg; 1823, Beriah Rogers; 1824-25, Moses Ward; 1826, Beriah Rogers; 1827- 
28, Ethan Warren; 1829, William Miller; 1830-31, Ethan Warren; 1832, William 
Miller; 1833, Samuel P. Hooker; 1834, Moses Ward; 1835, Hiram Shaw; 1836-37. 
Moses Ward; 1838, Hiram Shaw; 1839-40, Ethan Warren; 1841, Hiram Shaw; 1842, 
Henry S. Beaman; 1843, Hezekiah Bosworth ; 1844-45, M. P. Hooker; 1846, -Hiram 
Shaw; 1847-48, Roswell Clark; 1849, SethPeck; 1850, John Ward; 1851, Martin P. 
Hooker; 1852, William S. Miller; 1853-54, Pliram Hitchcock; 1855, Gilbert Peck; 
1856-57, J. W. Egery; 1858, Thomas Manchester ; 1859-60, Hiram Hitchcock ; 1861, 
Thomas Manchester ; 1862-63, Martin P. Hooker; 1864, Solomon P. Miller; 1865-66, 
Ralph Richards; 1867, Harrison Phelps; 1868-69, Martin O. Stoddard; 1870, Josiah 
Peck; 1871, Squire A. Warren; 1872, Rufus H. Clark; 1873, L. W. Manchester; 1874- 
75, Squire A. Wari'en; 1&76, L. W. Manchester; 1877-78, Rufus H. Clark; 1879, L. 
W. Manchester; 1S80-81, Thomas B. Clark; 1882, Fred H. Leonard; 1883-84, Junius 
L. Clark; 1885, Isaac N. Howard; 1886, John W. Donohue; 1887, R. E. Warren; 
1888, Josiah Peck; 1889, Aaron C. Broughton ; 1890, Charles K. New; 1891, B. E. 
Inman; 1892-93^ Stukley T. Downs; 1894-95, Josiah Peck; 1896-97, Stukley T. Downs; 
1898-1900, R. E. Warren. 

Town Clerks — 1 786-1 822, Jason Kellogg; 1822, Moses Ward, (to fill vacancy 
caused by death of Jason Kellogg;) 1823-1833. John P. Adams; 1834-36, Ethan War- 
ren; 1837, John P. Adams; 1838, Samuel_ IL_Beaman ; 1839, John P. Adams; 1S40-41, 
Peter Honey; 1842, John P. Adams; 1843-46, Chauncey L. Adams; 1847-55, Rufus 
H.Clark; 1856, John Honey; 1857-58, Rufus H. Clark; 1859-60, Peter Farnhain ; 
1861-73, Henry Martin; 1874, William Hyland; i?>is-'ll> Rufus H. Clark; 1878. Wil- 
liam Hyland; 1879. Rufus H. Clark; 1880-82, Henry Martin; 1883, E. Hawkins; 1884, 
Henry Martin; 1885, R. H. Clark; 1886, D. C. Hudson; 1887, Fred C. Jones; 1888, R. 
H.Clark; 1889, Heman Stannard, Jr.; 1890-95, R. H. Clark; 1896-1900. Junius L. 
Clark. 

Iron forges were started in the northern part of the town of Hamp- 
ton at an early day, and powder mills were erected about 1850. Slate 
factories were once quite an industry in the vicinity of Hampton Cor- 
ners. The Hampton Cheese Manufacturing Company was organized 
in 1869, with a capital of $4,000. Hampton Corners lies in the south- 



446 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

east part of the town, about a mile west of Poultney, Vt. Solomon 
Norton built a grist mill and a sawmill on the Vermont side in early 
days. A distillery was built about the same time and Colonel Pliny 
Adams kept the first store. 

Low Hampton is a village on the Poultney river about five miles 
above Hampton Corners. A store and a woolen mill were established 
at this point inany years ago. 

The names of Philip Embury and Barbara Hick are associated with 
the town of Hampton in religious matters. They organized a Metho- 
dist Society in the town in 1772 or 1773. William Miller, an eccentric 
preacher of the Biiptist church, who predicted the millenium would 
begin about 1843, lived and died in this town, and from it, as a center^ 
promulgated his prophesy over a large area. 

The Methodists of Hampton date their home organization from 
1 84 1, when they separated from the Poultney Society and organized 
at Hampton Corners; but the sect was in existence in Hampton as 
early as 1773 and a missionary was appointed to this territory in 1788. 
The whole countr)^ from New York City northward was one district 
at that time and Freeborn Garretson was the presiding elder. The 
Poultney meeting house was built in 1822. 

The Baptists and Episcopalians of Hampton worship at churches in 
Vermont. 



TOWN OF CAMBRIDGE. 

An act dividing the county of Albany into districts was passed on 
March 12, 1772, and it enacted that all that part of Albany county 
lying north of Schaghticoke and east of Saratoga be a district and 
named it Cambridge. The district of Cambridge, as laid out at that 
time, embraced not only the present town, but also Jackson, White 
Creek, and a part of the state of Vermont. It remained as a district 
in Albany county until it was organized as a town in 1788, and as such 
continued a part of that county until incorporated in Washington 
county in the year 1791. It will thus be seen that Cambridge was 
never a part of Charlotte county, the name of the county having been 
changed to Washington county in the year 1784. In 181 6 the towns 
of Jackson and White Creek were set off from Cambridge, leaving it 
with its present limits. The town comprises 22,657 acres, and is 
bounded on the north by Jackson, on the east by White Creek, on the 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— CAMBRIDGE. 447 

south by Hoosick river and Rensselaer county, and on the west by 
Easton. The surface of this town is diversified by hills, summits and 
dales, some of the higher points rising to upwards of three hundred 
feet above the valleys. Along the eastern border of the town is a 
portion of the valley of the Owl Kill, better known as^'the Cambridge 
valley, which is famous for its fertility and beauty. The soil of the 
town is generally fertile. 

Cambridge embraces parts of the Hoosick patent and the Cambridge 
patent. The Hoosick patent was issued in 1688 and part of it lies in 
Rensselaer county, across the Hoosick river. The Cambridge patent 
was granted in 1761 to Isaac Sawyer, Edmund Wells, Jacob Lansing, 
William Smith, Alexander Colden and others, upon condition that 
immediate settlement be jnade. This patent included 31,500 acres, 
north of the Hoosick patent, and extending up the Cambridge valle5\ 
The patentees were naturally desirous to have settlers locate upon 
their tract, and they offered one hundred acres to each of the first 
thirty families who would become actual settlers. Among the first 
of those who came in were John McClung, James and Robert Cowen, 
Samuel Bell, Col. Blair, George Gilmore, George Duncan, David 
Harroun, William Clark, John Scott and Thomas Morrissey. These 
settlers located on their lands from 1761-1763. Other early settlers 
in the town were Ephraim Cowan, Robert Gilmore, Austin Wells, 
Samuel Clark, Jonathan Morrison, Edwin AVells, John Allen, David 
Sprague, Seth Chase. John Woods, John Harroun, Thomas McCool, 
Thomas Ashton, Simeon Fowler, John Young, Josiah Dewey, Rael 
Beebe, William Eager, William Selfridge, John Younglove. John 
Corey. 

In Cambridge, as in some other towns of the county, the Revolu- 
tionary war retarded settlement and progress, and many of those who 
had already settled in the town left their homes through fear of dis- 
turbance by Tories and Indians. After the Revolution many returned 
to their homes, and among these were James Cowden, Ephraim Bessy, 
Benjamin Smith, John Morrison, William Cooper, Isaac Gibbs, James 
S. Cowden, Samuel Cowden, David Cowden, George Searle, William 
Bleck, Archibald Campbell, John Campbell, William Campbell, George 
Telford. Winslow and Timothy Heath, William King. Amos Buck, 
James and Eben Warner, and John Austin. Some of these, of course, 
were in what are now the towns of White Creek and Jackson. Phineas 
Whiteside, John Shiland, Nathaniel Kenyon, Samiiel Willett, Hugh 



448 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Larmon, Elihu Gifford, William Stevenson, Arthur Ackley, SamiieT 
Bowen, John Webster, John Green, John Weir, Jesse Averill. Luke 
English, John Wait, Abraham Wright and James Colter were other 
early settlers in the town of Cambridge. 

The first town meeting in the district of Cambridge was held in 
May, 1774, at which a moderator was elected, in addition to the town 
officers for the various offices as they exist today, and the office of 
moderator was continued for quite a number of years. The busi- 
ness of the town meetings for the first twenty years was similar 
to that which occupied the attention of other town meetings all over 
the county during this period, namely the passing of by-laws relating 
to the establishment of stocks, the maintenance of a pound for stray 
cattle, swine and so on, the appointment of pathmasters, and general 
business relating to social as well as public affairs. The number of 
recorded manumissions of negroes, up to the year 1820, shows that not 
a few slaves were held in Cambridge in the early days. 

The supervisors of the town of Cambridge, from 1774 to 1900, were: 

1774-75. Simeon Covell; 1776, David Strang; 1777, John Younglove; 1778, Ed- 
mund Wells; 1779-80, John Younglove; 1 781, James Cowden; 1782-88, John Young- 
love; 1789-90, John Harroun; 1791-92, Andrew White; 1793-96, Daniel Wells; 1797, 
Andrew White; 1798-1800, Lewis Berry; 1801-04, (probably) Daniel Wells; 1805-09, 
Jonathan Dorr; 1810-11, James Stevenson; 1812-13, William Richards; 1814-15, miss- 
ing from the books: 1816-24, James Stevenson; 1825-26, Philip V. N. Morris; 1827-2S, 
Edward Long ; 1829, Philip V. N. Morris; 1830, Sidney Wells: 1831, James Steven- 
son; 1832, Josiah Dunton; 1833-34, Benjamin F. Skinner; 1835. Jesse Pratt; 1836-38, 
Julius Phelps; 1839-41, John Stevenson; 1842-43, Anson Ingraham; 1844-45, Thomas 
S. Green; 1846-47, Thomas C. Whiteside; 1848-49, Zina Sherman; 1850, Berry L ong; 
1851, Garret Fort; 1852-53, Berry Long ; 1854, James Kenyon; 1855, Andrew Wood; 
1856-57, Orrin S. Hall.; 1858, Berry_Long; 1859, Jacob S. Quackenbush; i860. Berry 
Long; 1861-62, Azor Culver; 1863-64, John L. Hunt; 1865-66, Lemuel Sherman ; 1867, 
James McKie; 1868-69, Ira S. Pratt; 1870-71, William Dimick; 1872-73, Henry Dar- 
row; 1874-75, Thomas F. Cornell; 1876-77, Parismus Burch ; 1878-80, H. R. Eldridge; 
1881, Berry LongL i88 2-8'^. William Dimick; 1884-85, Thomas E. Skellie ; 1S86-87, 
JohnAshton; 1888-89, Nicholas L. Jenkins; 1890-91, William H. Aimy; 1S92-93, 
Donald McClellan; 1894-97, George S. Skiff; 1898-1900, George R. King. 

The town clerks for the same period were : 

1774, William Brown; 1775, Nicholas Mosher; 1776. John Younglove; 1777-81. 
Edmunds Wells, Jr. ; 1782-S8, John McClung; 1789-1805, Edmund Wells, Jr. ; 1806- 
1813, Ira Parmeley; 1814-1815, missing from the books; 1816-1820, Sidney Wells; 
1821-24, Philip V. N. Morris; 1825-29, Henry Whiteside; 1830, John Dennis; 1831-33, 
Julius Phelps; 1834. Morris L. Wright; 1&35, Julius Phelps; 1836, Isaac Gifford; 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— CAMBRIDGE. 449 

1837-41, Anson Ingraham; 1S42-43, Julius Phelps; 1844, Eli jah P. Fenton ; 1S45-46. 
Anson Ingraham; 1847-50, Benjamin Hall; 1851, John Larmon; 1852-53, James 
Kenyon; 1S54, John Larmon; 1S55-56, John B. Wright; 1857-72, Thomas E. Kenyon; 
1873-85. John Ashton; 1886-89, Nathaniel Becker; 1890-91, Alfred M. Becker; 1892- 
93, James P. Robertson; 1894-1900, William L. English. 

THE VILLAGE OF CAMBRIDGE 

Is the most important part of this town, and comprises what were for- 
merly known as Cambridge, North White Creek, and Dorr's Corners. 
The three places were incorporated in 1866. Cambridge is not only 
pleasantly located, but is a thriving business center, and has been 
widely noted for some years on account of its great annual fair. It is 
situated on the line of the Delaware & Hudson Railroad, and is thirty 
miles from Troy, twelve miles from Salem, and eight miles from 
Greenwich. 

Settlement was made in the locality of this village in 1770, the 
ground being owned by James and Thomas Morrison. From a cross- 
roads it grew slowly into a hamlet, and in 1852, when the Troy & 
Rutland Railroad was completed, it developed into a village, acquiring 
a prosperity which it has ever since maintained. Jeremiah Stillwell 
kept the first store at Dorr's Corners. Rice & Billings, Eddy & Brown, 
Paul Dennis, Clark Rice, Jr., Ransom Hawley, Kellogg & Crocker, 
were also among the earlier merchants. 

The Cambridge postoffice was established in 1797, with Adonijah 
Skinner as first postmaster. 

Soon after 1800 a sawmill was built on the Owl Kill, and operated 
for a time. In i860 Cornelius Wendell erected a large gristmill, but 
it was not used for any length of time, the building passing into use 
as a seedhouse. In the same year Alfred Woodworth and William 
Qua put up an extensive sawmill and planing mill, but the plant was 
destroyed by fire in 1876. T. E. McConnell erected a sawmill in 1876, 
and a feedmill was erected in 1872. About 1840 a furnace was erected' 
which was subsequently removed to the site of Lovejoy's blacksmith 
shop, and the firm of Warner & Lovejoy was formed. In 1885 Mr. 
Lovejoy's son, H. H. Lovejoy, established a plow works, which is 
still in operation, and conducted by H. H. Lovejoy & Son. 

In the early history of Cambridge a man named Page had a hat fac- 
tory in this place. Dr. Jonathan Dorr was one of the first promi- 

I 56 J 



450 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

nent physicians of the place. Simeon Crosby cultivated g'ar- 
den and vegetable seeds as early as 1816, and had a small seed- 
house at Coila. He was succeeded by his sons, Otis and Aaron. 
About 1836 Roswell Rice embarked in this business. Two years pre- 
vious R. Niles Rice started in the same line in Salem, and disposed of 
his seeds from a wagon, as he traveled through the country. In 1844 
he located in Cambridge, purchased the interests of R. Rice and the 
Crosbys, and enlarged the business considerably. In 1865 he asso- 
ciated with him his son, Jerome B. Rice, and the remarkable develop- 
ment of the Cambridge seed business is recounted in the article- relat- 
ing to this successful business man in another part of this work. 

Soon after the railroad was built through Cambridge, the growth 
of business called for the best banking facilities, and on September 
15, 1835, the Cambridge Valley Bank was organized, with a capital 
stock of $115,000. In 1865 this bank became a National bank, and in 
1867 a handsome bank building was erected. 

The village of Cambridge was incorporated by an act of the legisla- 
ture, April 16, 1866, and the presidents of the village from that date 
have been: 

1866-6S, B. F. McNitt; 1869, L. W. Kennedy; 1870, Charles Porter ; 1S71, Solo- 
mon Fuller; 1872, O. W. Hall; 1873, Azor Culver; 1874, John W. Eddy; 1875, James 
Thompson; 1876-77, Alfred Worth; 1878, James Ellis; 187982, Henry Noble; 1883- 
84, J. W. Thompson; 1885, H. R. Eldridge; 1886-87, N. L. Jenkms; 1888, B. F. 
Kitchum; 1889-90, W. P. Robertson; 1891-94, H. H. Parrish ; 1895, Eliot B. Norton: 
1896-97, John K. Larmon ; 1898. B. L. Ward, (resigned and C. E. Tingue filled out 
term;) 1899-1900, C. E. Tingue. 

The village clerks for the same period have been: 

186669, Hem-y Noble; 1870, Charles G. Harsha; 1871-72, Charles T. Hawlev; 
1873-74, John F. Shortt; 1875, James L. Robertson; 1876, Robert R. Law; 1877, 
Lewis P. Worth; 1878-80, John H. Inman ; 1881-82,". H. A. Lee; 1883-90, H. H. Par- 
rish; 1891-97, L. E. Nicholson; 1S98-99, Alfred G. Hill ; 1900, J. W. Smith. 

THE CENTENNIAL OF CAMBRIDGE. 

The celebration of the centennial anniversary of the founding of 
the old town of Cambridge was first suggested by Hon. Anson Ingra- 
ham, of the present town of Cambridge, in a brief letter, February 
28, 1873, to Hon. J. S. Smart, editor of the Washington County Post. 
Mr. Smart editorially took the matter up, and as a result five citizens 
each from Cambridge, White Creek and Jackson were appointed as a 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— CAMBRIDGE. 451 

central committee to arrange for the proper observance of the occa- 
sion. They met March 13, 1873, electing Cortland Skinner, chairman, 
and R. King Crocker, secretary, and decided to celebrate the centen- 
nial in Fuller's Grove on August 29, following. Proper committees 
were appointed and also officers of the day. A hundred ladies can- 
vassed the town for supplies. John Wier, aged ninety-six, was pres- 
ident, but Rev. Henry Gordon was acting president of the day, and 
opened the exercises by appropriate remarks. 

PROGRAM. 

Prayer, Rev. William Shortt. 

Music, Doring's band. 

Address, Rev. Henry Gordon. 

Welcome address, Hon. J. S. Smart. 

Singing — "Home Again," Chorus. 

Historical address. G. W. Jermain. 

Singing — "A Hundred Years Ago," Chorus. 

Address, A. D. Gillette, D.D. 

Address, Rev. S. Irenaeus Prime, D.D. 

Singing, "Home Sweet Home." 

Poem — "Centennial Day," Mrs. M. E. Doig of Jackson. 

Remarks, Rev. O. A. Brown. 

Remarks, Rev. Mr. Fillmore. 

Toast — "The Churches and the Clergy," Rev. J. N. Crocker. ■ 

Remarks, Hon. Benjamin Skinner. 

Remarks, Rev. John D. Wells. 

Remarks, Rev. H. G. Blinn. 

"The Churches and the Clergy," Rev. J. N. Crocker. 

" The County of Washington," Judge James Gibson. 

Remarks, Hon. C. L. Macarthur. 

Remarks, Rev. W. F. Lewis. 

Song of the Old Folks, Choir. 

Letters of Regret. 

Doxology. 

Benediction, Dr. Prime. 

The celebration took place in Fuller's Grove in Cambridge village,, 
and the day was a perfect one. It is estimated that 10,000 people 
were present, almost all of whom were, or had been, residents of the 
old town. Many who had not visited the town before in fifty years 
were there, and the general good cheer, also the bound-to-laugh-not-cry 
expression on the faces of many was quite amusing. All the day 
through old times were talked over by gray haired veterans, elders, 



452 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

deacons and ministers. In these stories it was noticeable that boys in 
other days were just like the boys of today. The farmer who had the 
best melons, pears, grapes, or nuts, was the butt of many a good 
story. 

CAMBRIDGE WASHINGTON ACADEMY. 

In the autumn of 1799 ^ subscription was raised for the purpose of 
building a house suitable for an academy, or school house, to be 
erected within thirty or forty rods of the new dwelling house of 
AVilliam Hay. With the money thus raised, a building was erected 
and a school opened in the year 1800, and maintained till the year 
1814. In the latter year a further subscription of $2,300 was secured, 
and a charter was secured from the Regents of the University of the 
State of New York, and on the i6th of August, 18 15. the Cambridge 
Washington Academy was opened, although it was not formally dedi- 
cated until September 5th of the same year. It opened with fifty-one 
scholars. From 1824 till 1827 the school was closed, because of lack 
of funds. In 1844 a new building was erected, just north of the site 
of the old one, and in 1863 an addition was built at the rear. In 1873 
the trustees finding themselves financially embarrassed, the school 
property was leased to the Union School district. It had a classical as 
well as an English department, and was well managed by its trustees, 
in the face of financial and other difficulties. The institution contin- 
ued from 18 1 5 until 1873, doing splendid work and achieving a high 
reputation, but in the latter year the trustees were imable to sustain 
it longer, lacking an adequate endowment fund, and it was merged 
into the regular schools. The Academy existed for fifty-six years, 
and. not a few men of today refer with commendable pride to this 
Academy as their a//ua mater. 

The following were the principals of the school during its existence 
as an academy: 

David Chassel, 1815-18; Rev. Alex. Bullions, 1818-19; David Chas- 
sel, 1819-24; Rev. N. S. Prime, 1827-30; Rev. John Monteith, 3830-32; 
William D. Beattie, 1832-39; Addison Lyman, 1839-41; Russell M. 
Wright, 1841-42; Rev. Thoinas C. McLaurie, 1842-43; Rev. E. H. 
Newton, 1843-48; Rev. A. M. Beveridge, 1848-50; Rev. Charles I. 
Robinson, 1850-52; Charles H. Gardner, 1852-54; John Henry Burtis, 
1854-55; Alden P. Beals, 1855-65; William S. Aumock, 1865-67; Rev. 
George I. Taylor, 1867-68; Daniel March. Jr., 1868-70; J. P. Lansing, 
1870-71; Miss Amelia Merriam, 1871-72. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— CAMBRIDGE. 453 

From 1873 until 1889 the school was maintained bythe Union School 
district, its official title being Cambridge Washington Academy and 
Union School. In the latter year a union was effected between this 
district and the Union School district, known as Putnam Institute dis- 
trict, which comprised the eastern part of the village of Cambridge ; 
and in the year 1891 a new and commodious building was erected in a 
central location, where the united schools have since been accommo- 
dated. The school, since entering the new building, has been under 
the charge of the following principals: 

James E. Potter, from 1891 to 1894; Charles Perrine, from 1894 to 
1895; and from 1895 to the present time, Ernest E. Smith has very 
acceptably and satisfactorily held the position. 

The Union School Library in the building, a large free circulating 
and splendidly selected collection, is very freely patronized by the 
villagers. 

The United Presbyterian Church of Cambridge, for the first twenty 
years of its existence, has no record of where meetings were held, or 
who were its ruling elders. Its early history shows three distinct 
religious elements, but agreeing on the same doctrines of faith, they 
joined together, notwithstanding the difference in their views on 
church government. 

In 1765, by request, the Burgher Synod of Scotland sent Rev. David 
Telfair and Samuel Kinlock, probationer, to America, to look after a 
congregation in Philadelphia and the petitioners in Cambridge. Both 
of these men preached in Cambridge, beginning in 1766. In 1769 
Rev. Dr. Thomas Clark, of the Presbytery of Pennsylvania, formally 
organized a congregation, and ordained and installed ruling elders. 
Having no regular pastor, the pulpit was mostly supplied by Presby- 
terian ministers during the next twenty years. In 1775 William 
Smith, an original patentee of Cambridge patent, gave, conditionally, 
a glebe lot to the congregation, upon which they at once began to 
erect a church. The lot is situated about one-eighth of a mile north of 
• the Old Burying Ground, south of the village, on the turnpike. When 
partly built, the war of independence broke out, and the church was 
not completed till after the war was over. It was then finished, and 
on January 5, 1785, the congregation organized itself into a corporate 
body, with the name, "The First Protestant Presbyterian Congrega- 
tion of Cambridge." This is still its civil title. The first trustees of 
this newly organized body were elected in May, 1785, and were as 



454 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

follows: Josiah Dewey, John Morrison, Edmund Wells, Phineas White- 
side, John Younglove, James Ashton, John McClung, John Welsh and 
Joseph Wells. Many of the most prominent and influential men of 
today trace their ancestry easily to the sturdy founders of this church. 
The pastor, in those early days, received a subscription salary — each 
member signing a " salary list," promising to pay such certain amounts 
as they elect to set opposite their own names. The preamble set 
forth that ''wheat, rye or corn will be accepted at Lansingburgh cash 
price, deducting the cost of transportation." 

In 1845 the new brick church was built in the village, and with the 
money obtained from the sale of the old church and lot, a parsonage 
was erected next to the church. Since the regular incorporation of 
the church in 1785, the following clergymen have received calls and 
accepted the pastorate : 

Revs. John Dunlap, 1791 to 1816; Donald C. McClaren, 1820-28; 
William Howden, 1829-34; Peter Gordon, 1835-40; T. G. Lowry, 
1842-52; William B. Short, 1853-86; S. J. Kyle, 1887-95, and A. A. 
Graham, 1895 to the present date. 

The present trustees are: John Maxwell, Michael Kerr, James W. 
Ashton, Robert W. Davidson, Thomas Livingston, Mitchell McFar- 
land, William McClay, Thomas Thompson and H. H. Parrish. 

Four churches have branched out from this original congregation, 
namely East Salem, South Argyle, Coila, and the (now) First Presby- 
terian Church of Cambridge. 

The church has kept steadily along, the membership naturally 
increasing. The congregation is made up mostly of the staunch 
descendants of English, Irish and Scottish ancestors, who have ever 
been foremost in the annals of American history. 

The Congregational Church of Cambridge began to hold meetings 
April 15, 1883, although not formally organized until May 8th. At 
that date eighty-five members met, adopted a constitution and filed a 
certificate of incorporation; elected J. D. Weir, John H. Johnson, J. 
Hill Palmer, H. G. Howe, E. P. Cramer and J. E. Porter as trustees, 
and deacons Morris L. Wright, B. C. Bishop and William P. Robert- 
son. Rev. H. G. Blinn was called as pastor, and ineetings were held 
in Hubbard Hall for six months. 

It then being thought advisable to build a church edifice, a lot was 
purchased of H. G. Howe; ground was broken October 11, 1883, the 
corner stone was laid with appropriate ceremonies November 2, 1883,. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— CAMBRIDGE. 455 

and the church was dedicated May 20, 1884. The church edifice is of 
brick, with chapel attached, seating four hundred. The cost of church 
and furnishings was $10,000. 

July 14, 1894, the Rev. H. G. Blinn, D.D., died at the age of sev- 
enty-five years, after a pastorate of eleven years. 

The church called Rev. Percival F. Marston, November 4, 1894; he 
continued pastor for two years, resigning November 30, i8g6. Rev. 
George E. Sweet accepted a call February 11, 1897, and preached till 
January i, 1899. On March 14, 1899, Rev. William Excell, D. D., was 
called to the pastorate, which promises to be a successful one. 

The present board of trustees is: John L. Pratt, Jr., S. E. Spauld- 
ing, George Lytle. Mrs. Mary N. Hubbard, Mrs. Alice W. Stoddard, 
Miss Helena M. Wright. The deacons are: William P. Robertson, 
William A. Allen and George L. Sherman. 

The church is in a flourishing condition and has a membership of 
about one hundred and twenty-five. 

The First United Presbyterian Church was organized August 17, 
1793, but the congregation seems to have had a meeting house a year 
or so earlier. Rev. Gershom Williams was the first pastor. In 1832 a 
second church building was erected, and in 1872 a third and hand- 
some edifice. A fine parsonage is also owned, and the congregation 
is strong and influential. 

St. Patrick's Catholic Church was organized in 1853, by Rev. Dr. 
Hugh Quigley, and work on the church edifice was begun the same 
year. In 1892 the building was enlarged to its present proportions. 
Rev. Thomas Field is the present pastor. 

The First Baptist Church of Cambridge was organizad July 3, 1843, 
at the house of Benajah Cook. Their church edifice was completed 
in 1845. Rev. Levi Parmely was the first pastor. 

St. Luke's Episcopal church was organized September 23, 1866, 
under the Rev. Clarence Buel. 

Woodlands Cemetery was surveyed in 1858 and dedicated Ji:ne 2d 
of that year. In 1865 it was enlarged to about twenty-two acres. 
Among its beautiful monuments are the Soldiers' Monument, and 
that erected to the memory of Philip Embury, the founder of Metho- 
dism in America ; and of whom an extended sketch is given, under 
the head of Methodism in the town of Argyle. 



The Whiteside Church is one of the most notable churches of the 



456 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

county. It was erected in 1800, by the Whiteside family, and thus 
received its name. Mrs. Phineas Whiteside left, by will. ^100 for 
the purpose of building a church in this locality. Other members of 
the family contributed enough more to complete it, and the church 
was built. The original building was of the high, steep roof style ; 
the pulpit was high, and there were galleries on three sides. In 1825 
the building was remodeled, the roof was lowered and the pulpit was 
replaced by a desk. The congregation was at first a branch of the 
United Presbyterian Church of Cambridge village. Rev. Mr. Dunlap 
was the first minister who preached in this church. 

Ashgrove Methodist Episcopal Church was once a notable and influ- 
ential society in the town of Cambridge. The church stood about two 
miles east of the village of Cambridge, and received its name from a 
combination of Ashton and its sylvan surroundings. Thomas Ashton 
and his wife settled in this locality in 1769. They came from Ireland 
and had been members of John Wesley's society there. In 1770 the 
celebrated Philip Embury formed a class at Ashgrove. A church 
edifice was erected in 1789. The second church building was dedi- 
cated in the winter of 1839-40, but in 1858 it was sold to the people in 
West Hebron, and removed there in 1859, and used as a Methodist 
church for some time. 

The village of Coila lies partly in the town of Cambridge and partly 
in Jackson. It has been known by different names during its history; 
first it was Green settlement, so called because of early settlers of that 
name in the locality; subsequently it became Stevenson's Corners, in 
honor of William Stevenson, a prominent resident. Finally the name 
Coila was adopted by the inhabitants, who are mostly of Scotch 
descent. William Stevenson had a store here at an early day, and is 
reputed to have done a large business. After him came McNeil & 
McNaughton. John Gow was in business here in 1840. In 1806 a 
small tannery was erected by a man named Rich. The business 
l^assed into the hands of the Robertson family in 18 16. 

Buskirks Bridge derived its name from Martin Buskirk, one of the 
early settlers. He kept the pioneer tavern and built the first bridge 
across the stream at this point. Col. Lewis Van Wort, of Revolution- 
ary fame, was an early settler here. The growth of the place has 
been on the Rensselaer side. 

North Cambridge is a hamlet about four miles west of Cambridge. 
Esek Brownell was an early settler and storekeeper here. The 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT ANN. 457 

Methodist Episcopal society of the locality is connected with the 
Eastern circuit. 

Center Cambridge lies about the center of the town, on the old 
" shunpike" road, and is surrounded by a rich and beautiful covmtry. 
Among- the early settlers in this part of the town were the Kenyons, 
Whitesides, Shermans, Aliens, Skinners, Pratts, Hills, Willetts, Bur- 
rows and Millers. Joseph Palmer was an early storekeeper, and J. H. 
Hall was long connected with the place, and was the first postmaster, 
when the postoffice was established there in 1829. The station on the 
Greenwich & Johnsonville Railroad is about a mile w'est of this place. 



TOWN OF FORT ANN. 

Fort Ann is one of those historic towns of Washington County^ 
whose soil was the theatre of human strife when the "Old French 
War " disturbed this region, and again when Burgoyne's devastating 
invasion swept from Whitehall to Fort Edward. The history of all 
the military operations, which occurred in this tract, have already 
been chronicled in the general history of the county, in our earlier 
pages, and here we trace the civil growth of the community. This 
town derives its name from the old fort built here in the early 
days and named after Queen Anne, the then reigning sovereign of 
England. 

The fortification known as Fort Ann was erected in 1757, at the 
jimction of Halfway Creek and Wood Creek, and was constructed on 
the stockade plan. The battle of July 8, 1777, occurred about a mile to 
the northeast. Upon the retreat of the Americans the fort was burned. 

The present village of Fort Ann includes the place where the fort 
stood. Another fort, know-n as the Mud Fort, was built in 1769. It 
consisted merely of earthworks, and was abandoned shortly after it was 
constructed. 

Besides the great military road from Fort Edward to Lake Cham- 
plain, another road was built from Queensbury to Fort Ann, during 
the later French w'ars, and a trail led from the latter place to the head 
of Soiith Bay. 

Fort Ann lies on the west side of the county, toward the northern 
part, and is the largest town in the county, containing 56,386 acres. 

[57 J 



458 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

It is bounded on the north by Dresden, Whitehall and Lake George; 
on the east by Dresden, Whitehall and Granville; on the south by 
Hartford and Kingsbury, and on the west by Warren county and Lake 
George. The southern part of the town is rolling land, but the 
remainder is mountainous. Three ranges of hills traverse its surface 
and between them lie two fertile valleys. On the eastern side of the 
town is the range of hills known as the Fort Ann mountains. They 
begin near the Wood Creek valley, and run in a northerly direction 
to the head of South Bay; thence along the southeast shore of this 
ba)' to its junction with Lake Champlain. Prominent peaks in this 
range are Battle Hill, Pinnacle, Ore Bed and Saddle Mountains. All 
of these are rocky and precipitous. On this range is a large pond 
w^hich lies one thousand feet above sea level. The Putnam Moun- 
tains traverse the central part of the town. This range rises just east 
of Fort Ann and runs north by northeast to the head of South Bay, 
continuing toward the north into' Dresden. The principal peaks of 
this range are Mount Nebo, Peaked Mountain, Mount Hope and High 
Knob. Between this range and Fort Ann lies the beautiful valley of 
Welch Hollow, formerly known as Turtle Hollow. 

The Palmertown Mountains run along the west side of the town and 
the eastern shore of Lake George. Sugar Loaf Mountain, on the line 
of Queensbury, and Buck Mountain, on the north, are the principal 
peaks. The latter is the highest peak in the town, rising to an alti- 
tude 2,500 feet. Diameter Precipice, on the north shore of South 
Bay, runs up to 1,300 feet, and is a rocky, almost perpendicular, 
precipice. 

Several ponds, of various sizes, are scattered over the western part 
of the town. These are Ore Bed, Sly, Haddock, Copeland, Trout, 
Forge, Lake, Bacon, Round, Crossets, Thunder, Little and Three 
ponds. The principal streams in the town are Furnace Hollow Creek, 
Podunk Brook, Halfway Creek and Wood Creek. Kane's Falls are on 
Wood Creek, about a mile north of Fort Ann. The fall is about sev- 
enty feet in a distance of one hundred and fifty yards. These falls 
were named after Charles Kane, who secured this water power for a 
mill site in the early days. Iron ore is found in this town, and a large 
bed lies at the foot of Mount Nebo. This mine was worked from the 
year 1825 up to about 1877. Of late years iron mining has not prom- 
ised a profit here, owing to the low price at which ore is laid down at 
manufacturing centers. 




HENRY S. ROOT. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT ANN. 459 

The territory of Fort Ann embraces all of the "Artillery Patent," 
which was jj;ranted to Joseph Walton and twenty-three other officers 
of the Eng-lish army, October 24, 1764; this forms the southern part 
of the town; apart of the Lake George tract, lying in the western 
part; a portion of the Saddle Mountain tract, in the northeast, and the 
Westfield, Fort Ann and Ore Bed tract, in the central part of the town. 

In 1773, two families — the Harrisons and Braytons — settled in the 
town of Fort Ann, and these were the only permanent settlers in the 
town prior to Burgoyne's raid, so far as there are authentic records. 
It is true that Major Skene had erected mills at Kane's Falls prior to the 
Revolution, but he was simply represented there by an agent, who could 
not be considered a permanent settler. As a matter of fact he did not 
become one. In the winter of 1781 Joseph Henegan, Isaiah Bennett, 
Hope Washburn, Ozias Coleman, John Ward, Joseph Bacon, George 
Scranton, Caleb Noble, Josiah Welch, Samuel Ward and Samuel Hurl- 
burt, had settled on the "Artillery Patent." In 1784 we find the follow- 
ing settlers had joined the young community in this town: Silas 
Tracey, Elijah Backus, Andrew Stevenson, Joseph Kellogg and James 
Sloan. In 1785 came Mead Harvey, Nathaniel Osgood and Zephan- 
niah Kingsley; and the following year Silas Child, Alpheus Spencer, 
Samuel Wilson, Elijah Bills, Israel Brown and Samuel Chapman were 
added. Other prominent early settlers were Benjamin .Copeland, 
Anthony Haskins, Samuel Winegar, Thaddeus Dewey, George Wray, 
Daniel Comstock and Prentiss Brown. In 1791 Ephraim Griswold 
came into the town, looking for water power, and bought a large tract 
of land in the southwest corner of the town, and in that year, or the 
following one, he erected a gristmill. Some time afterwards this mill 
was moved farther down stream, and in a few years he built a forge 
for the manufacture of chains and anchors, which was operated by 
Elisha M. Forbes, his son-in-law. This was the nucleus of the pres- 
ent Griswold's Mills. A postoffice was established here in 1833, and 
Elisha M. Forbes was the first postmaster. 

About the close of the Revolutionary War Jacob Van Wormer set- 
tled on the site of West Fort Ann, and built the first sawmill on 
Podunk Brook. In 18 15 a gristmill was built by Stephen Palmer, 
which was burned down. In 1827, Mix, Haskins & Spalding erected 
a forge and anchor shop, which was continued in operation for a long 
time. A tannery was built by Warren Kingsley in 1843. The settle- 



460 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ment increased to a village, at first called Van Wormer's Village, but 
now West Fort Ann. 

Fort Ann abounded in quaint names in the early days. The west- 
ern part of the town was called " Hogtown," because the farmers 
turned their hogs into the woods to feed on acorns and nuts. Johnny- 
cake Corners is said to have received its name from the fact that the 
first mill ground little, if any, grain but corn. The southern part of 
Furnace Hollow was called "Podunk," from a tribe of Indians who 
came from the east and settled beside the ponds. 

Fort Ann was formed, as the town of Westfield, March 23, 1786, and 
at that time included Putnam, Dresden and Hartford, as well as its 
present territory. Hartford was set off in 1793, and Putnam and 
Dresden, as one town, in 1806. In 1808 the name of Westfield was 
changed to Fort Ann, in memory of the old fort at the village. 

The first town meeting was held Januar}^ 22, 1781, at the house of 
John Ward, in the '"Artillery Patent," and the first town officers were 
there elected, Isaiah Bennett being the first supervisor, and also the 
first town clerk. In 1784 another ineeting was held and Ozias Cole- 
man was elected supervisor, while Isaiah Bennett was re-elected town 
clerk. In 1785 Medad Harvey was chosen supervisor and Isaiah Ben- 
nett again was made town clerk. 

On April 4, 1786, the first ? eg- u/ar town meeting was held, and fol- 
lowing are the names of the supervisors and town clerks from that 
time down to the year 1900: 

Supervisors— 1786, Stephen Spencer and Silas Child; 1787-1792, George Wray; 
1793, Daniel Mason; 1794-95. George Wray; 1796, Ralph Coffin; 1797, Charles Kane; 
1798, George Wray; 1799, Charles Kane; 1800, George Wray; 1801-05, Isaac Sargent; 
1806-10, Zephaniah Kingsiey; 1811, Reuben Baker; 1812-17, Zephaniah Kingsley; 
1818-24, Lemuel Hastings; 1825-26, William A. Moore; 1827-29, Henry Thorn; 1830- 
31, Benjamin Copeland; 1832-37, Salmon Axtell; 1838, William Baker; 1839-40, Eben 
Broughton; 1841-42. James Rice; 1843, James Farr; 1844, George Clements; 1845, 
Eben Broughton; 1846, John Hillebert; 1847, Robert Hopkins; 184S, Salmon Axtell; 
1849, Samuel Corning; 1850, Israel Thompson; 1851-52. John H. Thompson; 1853, 
William Weller; 1854, John M. Barnett; 1S55. Isaac Clements; 1856, Hosea B. Farr; 
1857, William S. Gardner; 185S, Hosea B. Farr; 1859-60, Alanson B. Axtell ; 1861, 
A. H. Wheeler and Willis Swift; 1862-65, Alanson B. Axtell; 1866-67, William E. 
Brown; 1868-69, Alanson B. Axtell; 1870-71, Lyman Hall; 1872-73, Orson W. Shel- 
don; 1874-75, John C. Patterson; 1876, H. G. Sargent; 1877-79, Orson W. Sheldon; 
1880-81, J. H. Garmon; 1882-83, Albert Johnson; 1884-86, John Hall; 1887, Orson W. 
Sheldon; 1888, Albert Johnson; 1889-90, Morris L. Robinson; 1891, Martin H. 
Adams; 1892-93, John H. Benton; 1894-96, Albert Johnson; 1897-98. M. W. Wood- 
ruff; 1 899-1900, C. F. Goodman. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— FORT ANN. 461 

Town Clerks — 1786, Isaiah Bennett; 1787-88, George Wray: 1789-90, Nathaniel 
Bull; 1791-92, George Wray; 1793, Asahel Hodge; 1794-97, Charles Kane; 1798, 
Isaac Sargent; 1799, Leonard Gibbs; 1800-11, Lemuel Hastings; 1812-16, Henry 
Thorn; 1 81 7. Lemuel Hastings; 1818-29, Joseph M. Bull; 1830-32, ErastusD. Culver; 
1833-35, John Sargent; 1836-38, John Sargent, Jr.; 1839, Albert L. Baker; 1840, Isaac 
Clements; 1841, Leander N. Burnell; 1842-43, John T. Cox; 1844-46, Horatio G. 
Shumway; 1847, Reuben Baker; 1848-52, Pelatiah Jakway; 1853, George S. Brough- 
ton; 1854, Elijah Stevens; 1855-56, George W. Miller; 1857, Henry Thorn ; 1858, 
Lyman V. Davis; 1859, Leonard Corning ; i860, William E. Brown; 1861, Leonard 
Corning; 1862, James F. Thompson; 1863-65, William E. Brown; 1866, Orson W. 
Sheldon; 1867. William H. Piersons; 1868, Low Washbourne ; 1869-71, Horatio W. 
Brown; 1872-73. Edward Corning; 1874, James E. Skinner; 1875, Edward Corning; 
1876, Patrick Gill; 1877-78, A. H. Farrington; 1879-80, William Pitt Moore; 1881-89, 
Stephen C. Gibbs; 1890-93, Leonard Corning; 1S94-1900, Clark E. Woodard. 

It is interesting to note the change in franchise which has taken 
place since the close of the eighteenth century, and the records of the 
town of Fort Ann furnish material for such comparison. In 1795 
Ozias Coleman and James Sloan took a census to ascertain the num- 
ber of electors in the town, and also to establish what electors could 
vote for senators and assemblymen. At that time electors qualified 
to vote for senators had to be possessed of a freehold to the value of 
^100, and to vote for assemblymen the elector must have a freehold 
of the value of ^20, or a rented property paying annually therefor 
the value of forty shillings. 

Fort Ann Village was incorporated by an act of the legislature 
March 7, 1820, and its boundaries have been enlarged twice since that 
date. The first charter election was held at the schoolhouse, May 9, 
1820, and thereat the following officers were chosen: William A. 
Moore, president; Lemuel Hastings, Henry Thorn, George Clark and 
John Root, trustees, in conjunction with the president; AmosT. Bush, 
treasurer. Following is the complete list of the presidents of the vil- 
lage from that date down to 1900: 

Presidents — 1820-22, William A. Moore; 1823-24, Ethan A. Fay; 1825-26, Joseph 
M. Bull; 1827-28, Lemuel Hastings; 1829, William A. Moore; 1830, George Clark; 
1831-32, Matthias A. Pike ; 1833, -Moses Miller; 1834. Matthias A. Pike; 1835-36, 
George Clark; 1837, Moses Miller; 1S38, George Clements; 1839, George Clark; 
1840-41, John T. Cox; 1842, Abial W. Howard; 1843, William A. Moore; 1844-54, 
Abial W. Howard; 1855-60, F. L.Brayton; 1861-62, Willis Swift: 1863, Charles H. 
Adams; 1864, Willis Swift; 1865-66, F. L. Brayton; 1867, G. W. Hull; 1868-70, 
George P. Moore; 1871, John Hall; 1872, Willis Swift; 1873, Periam Sheldon; 1874, 
Pelatiah Jakway; 1875, David Rice; 1876, Pelatiah Jakway; 1877, Orville W. Shel- 
don; 1878-79, Eli Skinner; t8So, D. M. Empey; 1881, Pelatiah Jakway; 1882, Silas 



462 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

P. Pike; 1883-84, James Gannon ; 1885-86, O. W. Sheldon; 1887-88, H. C. Clements; 
1889-90, Hiram Shipman: 1891-94, Isaac J. Finch; 1895-96, Leonard Corning ; 1S97, 
Edgar Wall, Jr.; 1898, Charles A. McGhel; 1899-1900. John Main. 

Village Clerks— 1820-22, J. M. Bull; 1823-29, Harvey Thorn; 1830, John T. Cox; 
1831, John Hillebert; 1832, Joseph Bacon; 1833, H. D. Savage; 1834, F. C. Moon; 
1835-36. Harvey Thorn; 1837, E. Broughton ; 1838, E. Stephens; 1839. Harvey Thorn;' 
1840, F. C. Moon; 1841-42, Harvey Thorn; 1843, Joseph Bacon; 1844-47, H. G. 
Shumway; 1848-56, P. Jakway; 1S57, S. P. Pike; 1858-61, John T. Cox,: 1862, F. M. 
Empey; 1863-67, F. L. Brayton; 1868, H. W. Brown; 1869-70, D. P. Cooler; 1871, W. 
E. Brown; 1872, L. N. Baker; 1873-77, Eli Skinner; 1878, James E. Skinner; 1879- 
94, F. J. Baker; 1895-1900, C. E. Woodard. 

The village of Fort Ann has a depot on the Delaware & Hudson 
Railroad; the Champlain Canal passes through it, and a daily stage 
connects it with Glens Falls. The postoffice was established in 1800, 
and George Clark was the first postmaster. The business carried on 
is mostly commercial, but there is a knitting and woolen mill con- 
ducted by Edgar Wall. 

The village has three churches, Baptist, Methodist and Catholic. 
The Baptist Church was organized June 22, 1822, but had no regular 
pastor vmtil 1824, when Rev. Bradbury Clay was installed. The con- 
gregation at first worshiped in the village school, but soon joined with 
the Methodists and Universalists in building a union church building, 
which they purchased in 1836. In 1874 they completed their present 
church building. Rev. J. W. Davis is the present pastor. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church of Fort Ann was organized about 
the same time as the Baptist Church, and in 1826 aided in building the 
union church. In 1837 they began a church of their own, which was 
completed in 1838. Rev. Mr. Gregg is the present pastor. 

The Catholic Church at Fort Ann is in the Kingsbury parish, and 
Rev. J. J. O'Brien of Sandy Hill is the pastor. 

Comstocks, a depot on the Delaware & Hudson Railroad, is in this 
town, and is notable as being the home of Hon. I. V. Baker. 

vSouth Bay, Kane's Falls and West Fort Ann, are the other notable 
places in the town. 

The First Baptist Church of Fort Ann was organized in 1789, and 
the Rev. Sherman Babcock was the first pastor, joining his flock in 
1790. In 1807 they built their first house of worship. In 1810 a new 
church building was commenced, but not completed until 1844. In 
1858 the church edifice at Comstock's Landing was completed, which 
has since been the place of worship. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— JACKSON. 463 

The Second Baptist Church of Fort Ann was organized in 1810 and 
may be said to have been an outgrowth of the First church. In 1868 
thev erected their house of worship at South Bay. 



TOWN OF JACKSON. 

The major portion of this town is made up from the Cambridge 
patent, which was a grant of 31,500 acres, made July 21, 1761, to 
Colden Banyar vSmith and others. This patent was bounded on the 
east by a line which left a long- narrow strip of land between it 
and that section of the Battenkill which flows nearly due north. This 
strip of land along with territor}- to the south was embraced in the 
Schermerhorn or Anaquassacook patent, granted May 11, 1762. The 
original map and partition deed of this patent was dated October 26, 
1763, and was drawn by John R. Bleeker, a surveyor. The lots' were 
numbered from the north end of the narrow strip of land aforemen- 
tioned and were twenty-five in number. This deed shows that lots 
No. I, 8, II, 18 and 23 were owned by Thomas Smith; lots No. 2, 10. 
14, 19 and 25 by William Smith; lots No. 3, 7, 15, 16 and 22 by 
Johannes Quackenboss; lots No. 4, 6, 12, 17 and 21 by Ryer Scher- 
merhorn; lots No. 5, 9, 13, 20 and 24 by Jacob and Barnardus Vroo- 
man Schermerhorn. 

This town is irregular in shape and rugged in conformation, yet it 
is an important agricultural part of the county. Its surface is largely 
drained by the Battenkill and its tributaries, no less than eight rivu- 
lets contributing to its waters. The largest of these is the outlet to 
Big Pond which lies nearly in the center of the territory embraced 
.within the great northern bend of the Battenkill. Just south of this 
pond there are three others in a chain, namely, Dead Pond, McLean 
Pond and Long Pond. These ponds are drained southward into the 
Owl Kill which empties into the Hoosick river on the southern border 
of the county. 

The hills in Jackson range in height from three hundred to eight 
himdred feet above the valleys, and there are many steep and rocky 
declivities. 

Settlements were made in this town about the same time as in Cam- 
bridge, of which it was formerly a part, that is, between the years 
1 76 1 and 1765. The early pioneers were an intermingling of New 
Englanders, Scotch and Irish. Among the early arrivals, in 



464 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HLSTORY. 

addition to those named upon the Anaquassacook Patent, were: 
Andrew Thompson, Ebenezer Billings, Obadiah Culver, Isaac Waters, 
Seth, Ebenezer, John and Nathaniel Crocker. Esquire Holmes, James 
Richardson, Joseph Valentine, James and John Telford, Mrs. Feather- 
ingame. Rev. Thomas Beveridg-e, Alexander Lourie, John Maxwell, 
Thomas and James Green, Joseph Archer, Robert Law, John Fer- 
guson, Jonathan Dunham, Daniel McFarland, Robert Simpson, Wil- 
liam McAuley, Moses Cowan, Edward McDowell and a Mr. Coulter, 
who came to this country from Ireland. 

The town of Jackson was organized by an act of Legislature in 1815 
and received its name in honor of Andrew Jackson. The first town 
meeting was held on the first Tuesday of April, 18 16, and following 
are the names of the supervisors and town clerks of the town from 
that date down to the year 1900: 

Supervisors — 1816, James Irvin ; 1817, David Campbell; i8i8-ig, Simon Stevens; 
1820-21, Edward Cook ; 1822, Simon Stevens; 1823, David Campbell; 1824, Edward 
Cook; 1825, Simon Stevens; 1826-27, Elisha Billings; 1828-29, James McNaughton ; 
1830-31, Thomas K. McLean; 1832, Elisha Billings; 1833-34, Peter Hill; 1835-36, An- 
derson Simpson ; 1837-38, Elisha Billings; 1839-40, Thomas K. McLean; 1841, William 
S. Warner; 1842, James Thompson; 1843-44, William S. Warner; 1845-46, Samuel 
McDonald; 1847, R. Alexander, Jr. ; 1848-52, James Thompson; 1853-55, William 
McMillan; 1856-57, Michael Kerr; 1858, Francis H. Arnott; 1859-60, Alex. Robert- 
son; 1861-65, William Thompson; 1866-67, Thomas B. Lourie; 1868-69, George Ar- 
nott; 1870-71, James Hill; 1872-73, T. D. Oviatt; 1874-76, J. C. Simpson; 1877-78, W. 
H. Holden; 1879-80, Andrew M. Collins; 1881-82, John Weir; 18S3-85, Geoi-ge L. 
Marshall; 1886-87, James Small; 188S-90, John H. McFarland; 1891-93, James W. 
Robertson; 1894-95, David A. Simpson; 1896-98, James Small; 1899-1900, Dallas 
W. Coulter. 

Town Clerks — 1816, Kirtland Warner; 1817, Solomon Dean; 1818, Robert Simp- 
son; 1819, Arden Heath; 1820-21, William McGeoch; 1822, Arden Heath; 1823, Kirt- 
land Warner; 1824-31, Arden Heath; 1832-34, John McMillan; 1835-37, Francis 
McLean; 1838-40, Samuel Oviatt; 1841-45, Richard Barton; 1846-48, Samuel Oviatt; 
1849-50, Joel H. Corbit; 1851-52, William McMillan; 1853-54, Charles N. Button; 
1855, John Ackley; 1856-61, J. C. Simpson; 1862-67, Alanson McLean; 1868-71, 
Thomas D. Oviatt; 1872, H. T. Hedges; 1873-74. D. A. Simpson; 1875, H. N. Dun- 
ham; 1876, A. C. Blanchard; 1877, George L. Marshall; 1878, Allen Stewart; 1879, 
James M. Simpson; 18S0-92, Pliny P. Rich; 1893-95, E. M. Kerr; 1896-97, Eben N. 
Rich; 1898-1900, E. M. Kerr. 

In the early records of the town we find entries of the birth and 
manumission of slaves, allowances for the poor, the establishment of 
pound for stray animals, etc. The town of Jackson is so located that 
it has no villages entirely within its territory, and its people worship 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— HEBRON. 465 

in churches situated in the villages which lie upon or just outside the 
borders. These churches are mentioned in the histories of their 
respective towns. 

The road now forming- the southwest boundary of the town is the 
route over which Baum's detachment of the British army moved in its 
advance upon Bennington. It is stated, upon the authority of Judge 
Gibson, that the band of French and Indians which, led by Major 
Rigaud de Vaudreul, destroyed Fort Massachusetts, on August 20, 
1746, encamped in the town of Jackson on their return march. The 
site of this encampment is said to be the height between the two 
ponds. There is also a traditional account of a great battle between 
hostile Indian tribes on the soil of this town, and near the ponds, long 
before white men came into its forests. 



TOWN OF HEBRON. 

This town lies in the middle east of Washington county, and part of 
its territory forms the watershed dividing the Pawlet, Black Creek 
and Moses Kill. This ridge lies in the northwest part of the town and 
extends into Hartford. A broad mountain range traverses the center 
of the town of Hebron, occupying nearly one-half its entire territory, 
and a series of hills extends through the eastern and western sections. 
The summits of these hills are from three hundred to five hundred 
feet above the valleys, through which flow the Black Creek and its 
tributaries. The town is bounded on the north by Hartford and 
Granville, on the east by the state of Vermont, on the south by Salem 
and on the west by Argyle and Hartford. 

This town was originally formed from the following grants or pat- 
ents: The Campbell, Kempe, Linnott's, Blundell's, De Forest, De 
Conti, Farrant, Sheriff, Williams and the grant made to commissioned 
British officers, mostly of the Seventy-seventh Highland Scotch Regi- 
ment. This was an infantry regiment and served seven ^^ears in 
America. When the King's proclamation was published, entitling 
every soldier to a tract of land, those remaining in this country 
promptly applied for grants, and several of them actually settled 
along Indian River about the year 1774. 

The Campbell Patent was a grant really made to Lieutenant Na- 
thaniel McCulloch, and sold by him to Duncan Campbell, June 11, 

[58 J 



466 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

1765. In 17 7 1 Campbell sold one-half of the grant, and the other half 
was, afterwards, confiscated by the state, on account of the treason of 
Campbell. 

The first settlement was made in Hebron about 1769 or 1770, by 
DQ.vid Whedon, John Hamilton and Robert Creighton. In 177 1 Rob- 
ert Wilson and Captain John Hamilton purchased one-half of the 
Campbell tract. In 1772 John and Joseph Hamilton, Robert, Thomas, 
James and John Wilson, and David Hopkins settled upon the same 
patent. In the same year came Amos and Samuel Tyrrell. The 
northern and eastern parts of the town were settled mostly by New 
Englanders, and the southern and western portions by Protestant Irish 
and Scotch. Owing to the configuration of the land the settlers were 
divided into several distinct neighborhoods, among the hills, and 
intercourse was not easy. Other early settlers were : James Lytle, 
Samuel Crossett, James Wilson, Alexander Webster, Alexander Mc- 
Clellan, George McKnight, Robert, Adam, David and John Getty, 
William Porter, Josiah Parish and Isaac Lytle, before the Revolu- 
tionary War. Archibald Woodward settled in the town during the 
Revolutionary War, and Thomas, Joshua and Clark Rogers, three 
brothers, came in the year 1787. The Livingston family came from 
Ireland soon after Dr. Clark, and settled in Salem, whence they moved 
into Hebron. In the County Civil List, and among the town officers, 
the names of other early settlers are to be found. 

Hebron did not suffer from the Revolutionary War, as did some of 
the other towns of the county ; it did not lie in the zone of conflict, yet 
some of the settlers enlisted in the patriot army and, as in every other 
part of the country, some of them were Tories and held by the king. 
Yet the town was not so fortunate during the boundary dispute over 
the Hampshire grants, all of which has been recorded in its proper 
place; and it was only a short distance south of East Hebron that 
Charles Hutchinson was driven from his home by the Vermonters, 
Allen and Baker. This story also has been recorded, and is to be 
found in the history of the town of Salem. 

The tract of country, now constituting the town of Hebron, was at 
first known as the district of Black Creek, and the records of annual 
meetings begin with the year 1784, although the town, as such, dates 
its existence from 1786. The name Hebron was given this town after 
Hebron, Connecticut, but this and other such names can be traced 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— HEBRON. 467 

remotely to the Puritan settlers of New England and their love for 
Scripture names: 

The complete list of supervisors and town clerks follows : 

Supervisors — 1784, Warham Gibbs, Samuel Crossett; 1785, Captain John Ham- 
ilton; 1785, Captain Nathan Smith; 1786, Alexander Webster ; 1786, Captain John 
Hamilton; 1787-90, Alexander Webster ; 1790, John Hamilton ; 1791-92, Alexander 
Webster: 1793-1800, Dr. David Long; 1801-03, William Livingston; 1804-07, Henry 
Mattison; iSo8, David Hopkins; 1S09-12, Henry Mattison ; 1813, Daniel McDonald; 
1814, Henry Mattison ; 1815, William Townsend; 1816, George Webster: 1817-21, 
William Townsend; 1822, Foster Foot; 1823-25, John McDonald; 1826-30, William 
Townsend; 1831-33, Henry Bull; 1834-36, Israel McConnell; 1837-40, Simeon D. 
Webster; 1841, Isaac Wilson- 1842-43, John Armitage; 1844, John Brown, Jr.; 1845- 
46, Simeon D. Webster; 1847, John Brown; 1848-49, William J. Bockes; 1850-51, 
George W. White; 1852, John Armitage ; 1853, S. D. Webster; 1854, William Case; 
1855, Almon C. Wood; 1856, Stephen M. Ingersoll; 1857, S. D. Webster; 1858- 
59, S. E. Spoor; i860, David Johnson; 1861-62, William Armstrong ; 1863-67, N. Rey- 
nolds; 1868-70, John M. Rea; 1871, John Brown; 1872-73, W. J. McClellan; 1874-75, 
Chester L. Getty; 1876-77, George Rea; 1878, Richard H. Durham; 1879, John R, 
Nelson; 1880-81, Edward L. Coy; 1882-83, Andrew L. Blueridge; 1884-85, Henry 
Welch; 1886-87, Harvey Reynolds; 1888-89, John F. McClellan; 1890-91, William 
Raid; 1892-93, Harvey Reynolds; 1894-97, Philip McEachron ; 189S-1900, Alexander 
Gourley. 

Town Clerks — 1784-85, David Hopkins; 1786-87, William Shepard; 178&-1809, 
William McClellan; 1810-12, William Townsend; 1813, William McClellan; 1814, 
William Townsend; 1815, W. Livingston; 1816-17, William McClellan; 1818, Robert 
McClellan; 1819-30, John H. Northrup; 1831-34, Simeon D. Webster; 1835-36, David 
Martin; 1837, William B. Bliven ; 1838-40, John Armitage; 1841-43, Charles Webster; 
1844, John J. Nelson; 1845, John Armitage ; 1846-47, James Hewitt; 1848, Franklin 
Day; 1849, J. McKnight; 1850, Eli Wilson; 1S51, James B. Wilson; 1852-53, L. 
Smith; 1854, George Rea; 1855, Henry McFadden; 1856, James B. Wilson; 1857-58, 
John Shaw; 1859, George Rea; 1860-62, Albert W. Cary; 1863-64, Franklin H. 
Smith; 1865, James Barkley; 1866-67, James R. Munson; 1868-69, F. H. Smith; 1870, 
H. Mclntyre; 1871-73, LeanderCole; 1874-75, George D. McKnight; 1876-77, J. R. 
Munson; 1S78-79, James McCloy; 1880-S2, John T. McClellan; 1883, LeanderCole; 
1884-88, Theodore Copeland; 1889-90, LeanderCole; 1891, Herbert Coy; 1892-93, 
Frank Gibson; 1894-98, John Wilson; 1899-1900, Orlin E. Oatman. 

The town meetings were held in the houses of residents, up to the 
year 1840, at least, and we find that, like the early inhabitants of 
other towns of the county, the town fathers were zealous in passing 
by-laws looking toward the good conduct of all members of the com- 
munity. It also appears, by the records, that slaves were owned in 
this town into the beginning of the nineteenth century. 

West Hebron is the largest village in the town. It lies in the south- 
western part, and at the junction of the two branches of Black Creek. 



468 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The water power at this point induced early settlement, and Bever- 
idge's sawmill was in operation here in the early days, and about the 
same time Garret Quackenbush had a small gristmill. The postoffice 
was established in 1816, with George Getty as the first postmaster. 
In 1866 Rae & McDowell built their starch mill. Lumber, cheese 
boxes and marble industries have been carried on for some time. 

The village of Belcher is said to have been named after Belcher- 
town, Massachusetts. A postoffice was established here in 1850, with 
W. Cleveland as postmaster. 

Other hamlets in the town are East Hebron, North Hebron, Slate- 
ville, and Chamberlin's Mills. The last named place was one of .the 
early business points in the town. The water power here was origin- 
ally owned by Wilson, Hamilton 8c Hopkins, and Asa Putnam had a 
cloth-dressing mill here prior to 1800. 

The Hebron United Presbyterian Church ' was organized about the 
year 1790, and under the title of the First Presbyterian Congregation 
of Hebron, under the inspection of the Associate Reformed Synod, 
and having a membership af seventy-five members. 

From 1764 to 1777 Dr. Clark labored in Salem; and during his 
regime, and that of his successor, Rev. James Proudfit, societies were 
formed in adjoining towns, and thus Presbyterianism was firmly 
ingrafted over a considerable territory in Washington County. 

The first meeting of the First Presbyterian Congregation in Hebron 
was held December 13, 1791, for the purpose of electing trustees and 
to decide upon a suitable location for a church edifice. They had 
already secured a charter of incorporation, giving them the aforemen- 
tioned title, but before they could obtain a charter from the Legisla- 
ture they had to have, in actual possession, a farm of 1 19 acres of land 
for a parsonage, and not less than one acre and twenty rods for a 
church site. They secured the land a short distance east of their 
church lot, and in a short time made the building thereon suitable for 
a parsonage. The contract for building the church was given to John 
Bolton and Gideon Woods of Salem, to put up the frame and finish 
the first floor, with the exception of the pulpit, the congregation fur- 
nishing the material. The contract price was £130. At the ' 'raising" 
of the church William Lytic was detailed to furnish one barrel of 



' The facts and much of the diction in this record are taken from the history of this church by 
Elder William Robinson. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— HEBRON. 469 

g-ood rum for the occasion, while a reliable man was to deal it out, 
allowiug none more than five drinks a day. Owing to the weight of 
the frame it became necessary to have five gallons more before finish- 
ing. Of course it took more than one day to complete the job. 

When the church was so far completed that it could be used, one of 
the most important oiTficers elected was a collector to gather in the 
pew rents. It seems his services were considered a necessity. It was 
also an annual custom, in the early days of the church, to appoint one 
or two persons, whose duty it should be to arouse with their ensign of 
office — a long stick— any who habitually indulged in sleep during the 
service. 

Rev. John Mairs was the first regular pastor of this church, and 
received his official call September 27, 1793. He was notable for his 
lengthy discourses, two of which w^ould take up nearly the whole 
Sabbath day, but this was a characteristic of almost all preachers in 
the early days. On December 16, 1794, Mr. Mairs became pastor of 
the Argyle congregation and was succeeded by Rev. James Gray, A. 
M., in 1798, after an interregnum of over three years. After Rev. 
Mr. Gray came Rev. Alexander Dunham in 1806; the church having 
been without a regular pastor for three years. Mr. Dunham re- 
mained until 1823, and six months after his resignation Rev. James 
McAulley was installed, who remained until 1835, and Rev. Jasper 
Middlemas succeeded him the following year. 

During his pastorate the church was disrupted and he resigned 
under pressure. That part of the congregation favorable to him had 
previously withdrawn, but without injury to the cause of religion, it 
would appear, for, like twigs blown from the parent willow, they took 
root and sprang up into a new church — the Second Associate Congre- 
gation of West Hebron. 

Mr. Middlemas was succeeded, in 1839, by Rev. Alexander Shand, 
who remained until 1850. The church was then without a pastor for 
three years, and in 1853 Rev. Joseph Kimball was installed, who 
remained until 1856. During his pastorate the church still in use was 
built. Rev. G. H. Robertson was the next pastor and remained two 
years, being succeeded in i860 by Rev. Isaac N. White, who remained 
three years. In June. 1867, Rev. John R. Fisher was installed, and 
he remained until 1874. In 1875 Rev. Thomas Wylie became the reg- 
ular pastor, whose health compelled his resignation the following 



470 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

year. He was succeeded by Rev. John Hood, whose pastorate was 
short. He demitted his charge in 1881. 

In 1881 the present incumbent, Rev. Willard S. McEachron, became 
pastor. His stated labors began November 13th, and he was ordained 
and installed December 27th of that year. He was then quite a young 
man and undertaking a responsible and arduous task, considering it 
was in his home community, but he has been eminently successful. A 
local writer had said of him: " Mr. McEachron combines earnestness 
and solemnity with superior talents and ability. He is a pleasant and 
persuasive speaker. In his attendance upon the sick throughout his 
extended charge, he often endangers his own health, that he may ad- 
minister the comforts of the Gospel to the believer, and reclaim the 
impenitent." 

On October 14, 1885, Rev. Mr. McEachron married Carrie P. Harsha 
of Cambridge, N. Y. She died October 9, 1889, aud regarding her 
the same writer has said : 

" She was a lady endowed with excellent judgment and many ac- 
complishments, which enabled her to be an invaluable assistant in 
the position she was called to fill. In that position her endowments 
shone most conspicuously, but above all her life was devoted to the 
cause of her Saviour. None knew her but respected and loved her for 
her personal worth and many Christian excellencies. On every occa- 
sion she endeavored to aid and encourage her husband in the v/ork to 
which he is called. She was especially solicitous that the young might 
become active workers in the Church." 

The United Presbyterian Church of West Hebron dates its exis- 
tence back to 1799, in which year a meeting was held at the house of 
Andrew Beveridge. Rev. Robert Lang of Argyle preached one- 
fourth of the time in 1807 and from 1808 to 1823 Rev. Peter Bullions 
similarly officiated. Rev. James Irvin was pastor from 1824 to 1831, 
and was the first regular pastor. The first church building was com- 
pleted in 1802 and was replaced by another and more modern one in 
1 83 1 and repaired in 1859. The parsonage was built in i860. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church of West Hebron had its inception 
in 1859 with a class of nine members. The society bought and moved 
the Ashgrove church building from Cambridge over to West Hebron 
and used it until they built their own church. The society was for a 
time associated with the Belcher church from which it separated and 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— PUTNAM. 471 

became incorporated as a separate body in 1869. A new chnrch edi- 
fice was erected in 1874. 

The Baptist Church of North Hebron began with meetings held in 
this village by Rev. Amasa Brown of Hartford in 1816, and the church 
was constituted January i, 181 8. 

A church edifice was erected in 1826 which was remodelled in 1873. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church at Belcher was organized in 1836, 
although class meetings had been held for some time. This organi- 
zation at first included the Methodists of Hartford and Argyle which 
places had no church at that time. The church grew rapidly and 
Hartford and Argyle became separate charges; still the Belcher 
church continued to grow and the West Hebron branch became an 
offshoot. The first church edifice was erected in 1836 and in 1875 it 
was moved into the village and remodelled. 

The Refonned Presbyterian congregation of West Hebron origi- 
nated under this name, in the town of Hartford early in the centiiry. 
It was reorganized on August 29, 1866, at West Hebron. They 
secured the brick church formerly occupied by the Associate Presby- 
terian Congregation. 

The Second Advent Church was organized January i, 185 1, but the 
Adventists had held meetings for two years prior to that time. They 
built their church in 1852 and their Sunday school was organized in 

1853. 

The West Hebron Classical School was chartered by the Regents 
of the University of the State of New York, March 22, 1855, and the 
North Hebron Institute was opened in 1850. 

TOWN OF PUTNAM. 

This town lies in the extreme north of Washington County and is 
entirely within the isthmus that separates Lake George from Lake 
Champlain. Its surface is rocky and mountainous, and its three 
ranges of hills include the valleys of Charter Brook and Mill 
Brook. The western range rises abruptly from the waters of Lake 
George and some of its peaks attain an altitude of 1,000 feet above the 
level of the lake. The most prominent of these is Anthony's Nose, 
situated just where Lake George bends sharply to the eastward, on its 
way to join Lake Champlain. The northern point lies partly in Ticon- 
deroga, and is the historic Mount Defiance, prominent in the wars of 



472 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the eighteenth century. Another range of hills runs along the eastern 
part of the town, a short distance from the shore of Lake Champlain, 
and another range traverses the central part of the town. 

On the shores of Lake George are two beautiful bays, Blair Bay and 
Gull Bay. In the southern part of the town there is a small sheet of 
water called Mud Pond, which lies three hundred feet above Lake 
George. About two-thirds of the surface of the town is too rough 
and rocky for cultivation, but the tillable portions are fertile and 
productive. 

A graphite mine of superior quality was opened in the southern 
part of the town years ago, and a mill was built to manufacture it into 
a marketable commodity, but the project did not prove remunerative 
and was abandoned. Recently, however, there has been considerable 
interest manifested in the graphite wealth of the town and outside 
capitalists have done some prospecting among the hills. 

The town of Putnam is bounded on the north by Essex County, on 
the south by Dresden, on the west by Lake George, and on the east 
by Lake Champlain. It was formerly a part of Westfield, now Fort 
Ann, and was erected into a separate town, February 28, 1806. It 
was named Putnam after the famous General Israel Putnam. In 1806 
its territory also comprised the present town of Dresden, which was 
set off in 1822. 

The first town meeting was held at the residence of James Burnet 
April 4, 1806, and following is the list of supervisors and town clerks 
from that date down to 1900: 

Supervisors — 1806-10, John Gourly; 1811-12, James Burnet;. 1813-15, Robert 
Cummings; 1816-17, Alex. McLaughlin ; 1818-19, David (Jongdon; 1820, Alex. Mc- 
Laughlin; 1821, David Congdon ; 1822-25, Peter Hutton ; 1826-29, Robert Easton; 
1830, Alex. McLaughlin; 1831-34, Alex. Robertson; 1835, Andrew Meiklejohn; 
1836, Robert Wright; 1837, Alex. Robertson; 1838-39, James Blair; 1840-41, William 
Hutton; 1842-43, William G. Corbet; 1844-45, John Wright; 1846, John Backus 
1847-48, Alexander Wiley ; 1849, William G. Corbet; 1850-51, Robert Paterson, Jr. 
1852-53, D. Williamson, Jr.; 1854-55, James McLaughlin; 1856-57, John Gourly 
1858-59, James Leidgerwood; 1860-61, Henry Beldin; 1S62-63, A. G. Meiklejohn 
1864-65, Anthony Anderson; 1866-67, William McArthur; 1868-69, Arnold Hulett 
1870-71, Thomas Leilley; 1872-73, William McArthur; 1874, Thomas Leidgerwood 
1875-76. Robert P. Graham; 1877-78, Henry D. Easton; 1879-80, William Graham 
1881-84. George W. Thompson; 1885-86, James Blair; 1887-88, D. E. Higgins; 1889- 
90, R. P. Graham; 1891, G. F. Burnett; 1892, George G. Burnett; 1893-97, D. C. 
Easton; 1898-1900, John G. McArthur. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— PUTNAM. 473 

Town Clerks — 1806-17, George Willey ; 1818-19, Truman Clark; 1820, George 
Willey; 1821, Anthony D. Welch; 1822-23, George Willey; 1824-25, Abel Comstock; 
1826-28, Alex. Robertson ; 1829-31, George Willey ; 1832-33, Daniel Williamson ; 1834, 
James Blair; 1 83 5-3S, George Willey ; 1 839, William Hutton ; 1840-42, George Willey; 
1843, William M. Wiley; 1844, William E. Woodstock; 1845-47, William G. Corbet; 
1848, James Bennett; 1849-50, James McLaughlin; 1851-54, William G. Corbet; 1855, 
George Easton ; 1856-57, D. Williamson, Jr.; 1858, James McLaughlin; 1859-61, D. 
Williamson, Jr.; 1862, Alex. C. Thompson; 1863-65, D. Williamson, Jr.; 1866, Wil- 
liam McLaughlin, Jr.; 1867, D. Williamson. Jr. ; i8'68-83, Charles W. Williamson; 
1884-85, D. A. Higgins; 1886-8S, Frank Dedrick ; 1889-96, C. W. Williamson; 1897- 
igoo, G. E. Dedrick. 

The territor}' embracad by this town was composed of two tracts, 
namely, Turner's Patent and Hutton's Bush. The former lay in the 
western part of the town, the latter in the eastern part. Hutton's 
Bush was so named after William Hutton, who was an early settler. 
It appears that a man named Hodgson came to this part of the country 
to examine the .land, and retvirning to Scotland sold the tract to Wil- 
liam Hutton & Co. Hutton came to America and resided at White- 
hall for a time before settling- upon the tract, which he retained, after 
a lawsuit with another claimant named John Williams. Hutton, his, 
lawyer, a man named Dickinson, of Lansingburgh, and William 
Cockburn, who surveyed the tract, divided it equally; Dickinson 
taking the northern part, Hutton the center and Cockburn the south- 
ern part. 

The first settlement was made in Putnam, near the center of the 
town, by Joseph Haskins, a squatter, who built a log house on lot No. 
22. He came about 1782, and subsequently acquired a title to his 
land. After him came William Hutton in 1784, George Easton in 
1785, and soon afterwards several others, among whom were: Robert 
Cummings, Alexander Corbet, Alexander McLaughlin, James Burnet, 
John Gourlie, Pelatiah Bugbee, William Jones, George Wiley, James 
Mc Arthur, Luther Gaut, George Rickert, Aaron Backus, Christopher 
Burgess, Levi Harrington, Asahel Harrington, Abiathar Odell, Samuel 
Rogers, Philo Rogers, Samuel McCarl, Dyer Perry, Jonas Odell, Josiah 
Clark, Leman Bunce, Frederick Dedrick, John Hale, Luke Welch, 
Ephraim Case, Peleg Durfee, John Butterfield, Ords B. Johnson and 
John Hale, Jr. These came in between the years 1786 and 1803. 

Regarding the early settlement of the extreme northern part of the 
town there is a curious legend that it was first settled by negroes;: 

[59 J 



474 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

hence the name Black Point. Tradition says that it was once owned 
by a man known as "Black Prince," and it is stated that a Prince 
Taylor once lived there, who was the same personage. 

Putnam Academy was built in 1854, the land for its site being do- 
nated by George Easton. 

The Free Will Baptist Church of Putnam was organized April 7, 
1823, by Elder Sylvester Robinson, assisted by Elder John S. Carter 
and Deacon Gideon Carter. Elder Carter was the first pastor and 
officiated until 1825, when he was succeeded by Abraham Shear. This 
church passed through its share of vicissitudes; in its earlier days 
Elder Carter joined the Mormons and the congregation dwindled and 
grew again several times. The society was not incorporated until 
i860, although they had a church edifice as early as 1841. In 1858 a 
parsonage was built on a site leased from Deacon John Backus. 

The United Presbyterian Church of Putnam, N. Y., was not organ- 
ized until 1803, although they are reputed to have held meetings 
before the year 1800. In 1803 a meeting was held at the house of 
William Hutton, under the authorit}^ of the Associate Presbytery of 
Cambridge, and at this meeting a church was organized. For several 
years, however, the preaching was irregular, but in 18 19 they had a 
regular pastor. Rev. James Miller. The first church building was 
completed in 181 7, and had been eleven years in course of construc- 
tion. In 181 7 this church was replaced by a fine substantial building. 

TOWN OF WHITEHALL. 

Whitehall is one of the most historic towns in the county. It lies 
in the northeastern part of the county and is bounded on the east by 
Hampton, on the west by Fort Ann, on the south by Fort Ann and 
Granville, on the north and northwest by South Bay, Lake Cham- 
plain and the Poultney River. On its western side, and along the 
head of the lake, this town is rugged, but the central and eastern 
portions are rolling land. It is drained by Wood Creek and the Paw- 
let River, both of which enter from the south and after a northerly 
course unite in a single stream which, under the name of Wood Creek, 
enter the harbor at Whitehall. 

In the Indian wars between the Iroquois and the Hurons and other 
tribes of Canadian Indians, Lake Champlain and the Hudson River 
were a natural military highway, for long ages before the white man 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— WHITEHALL. 475 

saw their waters; and when England and France were battling for 
supremacy in the new world many of their expeditions traversed the 
same route. These operations have been detailed at length in the ear- 
lier pages of this work, and to them the reader is referred for the full- 
est and best information relating thereto. 

The first settlement in Whitehall was made by Major Philip Skene, 
a half-pay officer of the English army. He settled here, along with 
about thirty families who accompanied him. This was in the year 
1 76 1. After settling his colony he went to the West Indies and brought 
back a number of negro slaves. On his return he found that about 
half of his settlers had abandoned their land, and the remainder were 
greatly discontented. But it seems he was not discouraged by this 
state of affairs, for he spent his own money in improvements and 
secured a royal patent for 25,000 acres of land on March 13, 1765. He 
vigorously prosecuted the work of establishing his colony upon a per- 
manent basis, made extensive improvements, and with his negroes 
and some discharged soldiers, built a sloop to ply upon the lake, which 
greatly facilitated transportation. He also built a sawmill and a grist- 
mill at the falls on Wood Creek, and erected a stone mansion for him- 
self. But his energy is, perhaps, best illustrated in his work of 
opening up a road from Whitehall to Salem. 

Whitehall was at first called Skenesborough, taking its name from 
its enterprising founder. " Skene's barn-," a massive stone building, 
was erected by him, but it has long since disappeared. The keystone 
to the arch of the gateway to this structure was placed in the wall of 
the old Episcopal church when it was erected in 1837. 

When the Revolutionary War broke out Major Skene was in Eng- 
land, and it being currently reported that he was favorable to the 
King's cause, the Americans determined to break up his settlement. 
So, on May 13, 1775, Captain Herrick, with a party of volunteers, 
marched into Skenesborough and took it without opposition. Skene's 
son, fifty settlers and twelve slaves were taken prisoners. Soon after 
this General Schuyler occupied Skenesborough as his headquarters, 
and it was held by the patriots for more than two years. When Bur- 
goyne came in 1777 he occupied the Skene mansion, and Skene acted 
as his host. After the war Skene's lands were confiscated. 

Among she early settlers in the town we mention Zebulon Fuller, 
Daniel Brundage, Elisha Martin, Levi Stockwell, Zebulon Tubbs, 
Robert Wilson, Josiah Farr, John Connor, James Burroughs, Silas 



476 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Childs, Nathaniel Earle, Jeremiah Bvirroughs, Joseph Daniel, Samuel 
Wilson, William Gordon, John Gault, Gideon Taft, Cornelius Jones, 
Thomas Wilson, William Higley, Levi Falkenburg, Joel Adams, 
Thomas Lyon, George Douglass, Samuel Hatch, Rufus Whitford, 
Simeon Hotchkiss, John Cogswell, Stephen Knowles, Joseph Bishop, 
Thomas McFarren, Ephraim Thomas, Andrew Law, Enoch Wright, 
Lemuel Bartholomew, Stephen Parks, Silas Baker, Isaac Warner. 

Skenesborough was erected into a township March 13, 1765, but 
there is no record of municipal organization until 1778. In that year 
the first town meeting was held and Daniel Brundage and Levi Stock- 
well were elected supervisors and James Burroughs town clerk. In 
1779 Daniel Brundage was again elected supervisor, in 1780 Levi 
Stockwell. Silas Childs served in 1782-3, and James Burroughs and 
Silas Childs in 1784. In 1786 the name of Skenesborough was changed 
to Whitehall. 

Following is a list of the supervisors of the town since that date : 

Supervisors — Daniel Earll and John Adams; 1787, Jeremiah Burroughs; 1788- 
gi, Cornelius Jones; 1792, Thomas Lyon; 1793, Daniel Earll; 1794-97, Jeremiah Bur- 
roughs: 1798-99, Nathaniel Earle: 1800-1814, Daniel Earll; 1815, Daniel Earll; 1816- 
20, Melancthon Wheeler; 1821-23, Daniel Earll; 1834-40, George Barney; 1841-42, 
Elisha A. Martin: 1843-44, Dennis Jones; 1845-48-49, John H. Boyd; 1846-47, Philan- 
der C. Hitchcock ; 1850, Daniels. Wright; 1851-52, Oliver Bascom ; 1853-54, Olif 
Abell; 1855-56, Alwyn Martin; 1857, Randolph C. Johnson; 1858-59, Julio T. Buel; 
1860-61, Taylor Manville; 1862-63, Samuel Benjamin; 1864-65, Oliver Bascom; 1866, 
A. H. Tanner; 1867-69, Elisha A. Martin; 1870-71, George Brett; 1872, S. T. Cook; 
1873-74, George Brett; 1875-77, Warren F. Bascom; 187S-80. S. C. Bull; 1881, Augus- 
tus P. Cooke; 1882-83, James Spencer; 1884-85, Thomas A. Lillie; 1886-88, A. J. 
Long; 1889-93, Rufus R. Davis; 1894-gS, Charles J. Barker; 1899-1900, Evander M. 
Finch. 

Town Clerks— 1786, Isaac Banks; 1787-91, B. Richardson; 1792-93, Asa Noyes; 
1794-97, George Ackley; 1798-1802, Gideon Taft; 1803, George Ackley; 1804-7, 
Gideon Taft; 1808-15, Nathaniel Hall; 1816-21, Nathan Hall; 1822. Justin 
Smith; 1823-25. Nathan Hall; 1826-30, Gideon Taft; 1831, Julian G. Buel; 
1832, Gideon Taft; 1833, James G. Caldwell; 1834-35, Edward W. Parker; 1836-40, 
Gideon Taft; 1841-44, Andrew Anderson; 1845-47, Robert Doig; 1848-49, Henry Gib- 
son; 1850-54, Horatio N. Parker; 1855-56. Franklin Bascom; 1857, D. L. Falkenbury; 
1858, Albert G. Bristol; 1859, D. L. Falkenbury; i860, George Hall; 1861-67, Charles 
C. Rich; 186S-71, Heman C. Allen; 1872, J. F. Clark; 1873, James M. Wood; 1874-77, 
Lewis K. Pierce; 1878. E. J. Baldwin; 1879-80, O. A. Manville; 1881, F. A. Hotch- 
kiss; 1882, O. A. Manville; 1883, E. P. Newcomb; 1884, O. A. Manville; 1S85, E. 
W. Clark; 1886-88, P. W. Barry; 1889-92, R, A. Chapin; 1893, C. J. Barker; 1894-97. 
George D. Cull; 1898-1900, A. H. Taft. 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— WHITEHALL. 477 

The East Whitehall Methodist Episcopal Church is the oldest relig- 
ious organization in Whitehall and one of the oldest of this denomin- 
ation in the county. In 1788 vSamucl Wigdon was appointed to the 
Champlain Circuit; in 1791 meetings began in the houses of residents 
and in 1796 a church organization was formed under the celebrated 
Lorenzo Dow, who was the first pastor. In 1801 this church was in- 
cluded in the Brandon Circuit and in 1822 the Whitehall Circuit was 
formed. In 1826 a church edifice was erected. 

VILLAGE OF WHITEHALL. 

The very early history of this village is inwoven in that of the town 
and has been noticed in connection therewith. Up to 1790 there was 
little growth, the hamlet, as it then was, containing less than a dozen 
houses. A postoffice was established in 1796, but even then the pop- 
ulation was inconsiderable and the growth for many years appears to 
have been slow because the locality was reputed to be unhealthy. 

When the War of 18 12 broke out Whitehall again became a supply 
station and, to some extent, a strategic point. Government store- 
houses were built and fortifications upon the hill were mounted with 
artillery, while barracks were constructed for the troops garrisoned 
there. It was the rendezvous of the little army raised to resist Pro- 
vost's advance on Plattsburg in 18 14, and after the victory of 
McDonough on September 14, 18 14, his squadron with the prizes 
anchored in East Bay a short distance below the village, where they 
remained, side by side, until they decayed and sank at their moor- 
ings. In 1 814 entrenchments and a magazine were erected upon 
Taft's Island below the village ; of these there can scarcely be said to 
be a trace remaining. 

As soon as the war was over the village began to grow and some 
good buildings, for that day, were erected. Among them were 
Anthony Rock's hotel, Henry Wiswell's block, the Bellamy House, 
James H. Hooker's store and Captain Archibald Smith's store, both 
of which had brick fronts and these were the first brick buildings in 
the village. James H. Hooker also had a sawmill and a gristmill and 
there was also a fulling mill and a stave mill in the village at that 
time. 

In 1820 Whitehall became an incorporated village. In 1822 the 
Champlain Canal was opened between Fort Edward and Lake Cham- 



478 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

plain and in the same year The Whitehall Emporium, the first news- 
paper of the village was established. In 1824 the Marquis de 
Lafaj^ette visited Whitehall and was received with all the display and 
hospitality the village could command. He came from Burlington on 
the steamer Phoenix. 

Whitehall is largely indebted to the steamboat navigation upon 
Lake Champlain for its commercial prosperity. The navigation of 
the lake terminates at this point where its carriers are met by the 
Delaware & Hudson Railroad and the Champlain Canal. The first 
steamer to ply upon the lake was the " Vermont," which was built at 
Vergennes about the year 1810. 

This vessel plied between Whitehall and St. Johns, but was sunk by 
an accident in 181 7. The " Phcenix " was built in 181 6 and owned by 
the Champlain Transportation Company. She was destroyed by fire 
in 1819. The "Champlain" was also owned by this company and 
was built in 1816, but was burned in Whitehall harbor in 181 7. The 
" Congress " was built in 1819 and ran upon the lake until worn out. 
In 1822 a second "Phoenix" was put on the lake, but an engine, too 
strong for her, brought about her ruin. Others beside the Champlain 
Transportation Company embarked in the carrying trade and the 
"Franklin," the "Winooski," the "Burlington," the "Whitehall," 
"Francis Saltus," "Canada," and other steamers were put upon the 
lake and the transportation business continued to grow until it has 
attained its present proportions. 

The Northern Transportation Company was established in 1857 and 
the Whitehall Transportation Company in 1867. Further information 
on this subject will be found in the article relating to Henry G. Bur- 
leigh, who was a potent factor in the carrying trade on the lake for 
many years. 

The port of Whitehall first received official recognition in January, 
1849, when it was included in an act of Congress, as such, and on 
March 2, 1849, President Polk issued a proclamation extending cer- 
tain privileges to the "Port of Whitehall." On March 16, 1850, the 
laws relating to Whitehall were revised and consolidated by an act 
which also gave it incorporation with its present limits, but the char- 
ter was again amended in the years 1853, 1859, 1869 and 1876. 

The village records are obtainable only as far back as 1861. 

Following are the names of the presidents of the village from that 
date: 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— WHITEHALL. 479 

1861-67, A. H. Hall; 186S, W. J. Smith; 1869, A. Martin; 1870-72, D. G. Perci- 
val ; 1873, James Doren; 1874, W. F. Bascom ; 1875, N. Z. Baker; 1876-77, E. A. 
Martin: 1878-81, Martin Sawyer; 1882, William G. Stufflebean; 1883, Elisha A. Mar- 
tin; 18S4, Roland E. Bascom; 1885, W. G. E. Wood; 1886, James Spencer; 1887, 
Warren F. Bascom; 1888-89, Jiimes Doren ; 1S90-94, Oscar F. Davis; 1895, Edward 
P. Newton; 1896-97, E. F. Horton ; 1898-99, Horace A. Stevens; 1900, Nathan E. 
Foote. 

The names of the village clerks for the same period are : 

1861-63. A. J. Long; 1864, Walter Warner ; 1865-67, W. A. Wilkins; 1868-69, T. 
S. McLachlin; 1870, T. A. Patterson; 1871, Charles Farmer, Jr.: 1S72, William P. 
Lamb; 1873-81. D. C.Smith; 1882, James H. Burdett; 1883-84, D. C. Smith; 1885, 
George D. Cull; 18S6, T. A. Patterson; 1887-88-89-91, Charles J. Barker; 1890, Sey- 
mour A. Conery; 1892-93, Oliver B. Bascom; 1894-97, Augustus R. Stevens; 1898, 
Howard S. Macy; 1899-1901, Augustus R. Stevens. 

The falls of Wood Creek furnish a natural water power of large 
force and are located favorably for Whitehall, being not only within 
the village, but closely adjacent to the navigable waters of the lake. 
After the mills, already mentioned, had been displaced by the canal, 
a clothing mill was started by a man named Millard. In 1848' this 
mill was purchased by William Wait, who refitted it and began the 
manufacture of ingrain carpets. It was burned down in 1864. , This 
fire was quite extensive and involved a serious loss to Whitehall, con- 
suming not only this important industry, but also Cozzens' grist and 
sawmills, the sash and door factory of Crampton & Abell, and the 
foundry and machine shop of M. V. B. Bull. 

In 1837 W. W. Cook erected a steam sawmill and planing mill, which 
were burnt in 1842 and rebuilt in 1843-4. They were subsequently 
burned down again and the present mills erected. Mr. Cook also had 
a planing mill on Canal street, which was burned down. D. G. Per- 
cival built a planing mill and O. F. Blunt began to operate it in 1852. 
It subsequently passed into the hands of Manville, Hall & Co., and 
later back to Mr. Percival. The Ames sash, door and blind factory 
was built about 1868, and the steam sawmill of Polly, Osgood & Co. 
was put in operation in 1873. In 1867 D. P. Nye started up a flour 
mill and soon after a foundry. The principal industries of Whitehall 
at present are: The Champlain Silk Mill, the Burdett & Havens Lum- 
ber Company, the Whitehall Lumber Company, Alexander William- 
son's Sash, Door and Blind Factory. 

The old National Bank of Whitehall was chartered as the Bank of 
Whitehall in 1829, and opened its doors for business in 1831. It be- 



480 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

came a national bank under its present name May 4, 1865, with a 
capital of $100,000. The Merchants National Bank of Whitehall was 
chartered as the Bank of Whitehall in 1873, and changed to a national 
bank, with its present name, March 12, 1875, with a capital of 
^150,000. 

Comparatively early in its history Whitehall set about introducing- 
pure water into the village, and in 1828 a public aqueduct was con- 
structed. As the population increased the supply of water thus pro- 
vided proved insufficient and reservoirs have been added, from time 
to time, to keep up an adequate supply. 

A splendid armory, for the Ninth Separate Company, was com- 
pleted in Whitehall in the year 1900. 

The First Presbyterian Church in Whitehall had its inception in the 
efforts of General John Williams, who collected tituber and other ma- 
terials for a church building in 1805-6. Upon his death his son, 
Colonel John Williams took up the project and erected a church. 
The first Presbyterian body that existed in Whitehall was an Asso- 
ciate Reformed Church, organized in 1810 by Rev. Alexander Proudfit 
of Salem, but the movement died out. On September 18, 181 9, the 
present church was organized by Rev. Samuel Blatchford, D.D., as 
''The First Presbyterian Church in Whitehall." They did not have 
a regular pastor until 1822, when Rev. John R. Coe was installed. 
In 1842 the church building was enlarged and improved, and in 1848 
a new church was completed. The present pastor is Rev. Charles 
McGinnis. 

The First Baptist Church in Whitehall came into historical notice 
in 1838, when the members met at a private residence and effected a 
temporary organization, which may be considered as the start of the 
present church. The body was formally organized July 15, 1840, and 
in 1 841 the church was admitted into the Union Association. In 1846 
they purchased the church building erected by the Episcopalians in 
1837, and occupied it until 1874, when it was burned down, but a new 
church was completed and dedicated in 1876. The present pastor is 
Rev. Noah Richards. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church in Whitehall was organized in 
1822, by Rev. Philo Ferris. They worshiped in private houses until 
about 1832, when they built a church, which was improved in 1848 
and again in 1863. Rev. W. C. Chapman is the present pastor. 

Trinity Episcopal Church came into existence about 1834, under 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— WHITE CREEK. 481 

Rev. Palmer Dyer, and their church building was erected in 1837. In 
1843 they built their second church and sold the first to the Baptist 
congregation. In 1866 they erected the present church. The pres- 
ent incumbent is Rev. James B. Mead. 

The Church of Our Lady of Angels, Catholic, was inaugurated in 
1 84 1, when a church was built, but the congregation held services for 
some time prior to that date, the first of which were conducted by 
Rev. Fathar Mailloux, in the house of Antoine Renois. In 1867 the 
church property was taken by the village for street purposes, and the 
congregation, which had grown very large, divided into two sections, 
according to their language; part being English and part French. 
The English speaking members formed the "Church of Our Lady of 
Angels;" and, in 1868, a new church was projected, which was dedi- 
cated by Rt. Rev. J. J. Conroy, Bishop of Albany, November 24, 1870. 
The pastor at that time was Rev. J. J. McDonnell. The present pas- 
tor is Rev. Thomas McLoughlin. 

The Catholic Church of Notre Dame De La Victorie, came into 
existence in 1867, branching out from the present Whitehall church, 
and was placed under the charge of Rev. A. Payette. They pur- 
chased the old Episcopal church, which they remodeled and improved. 
The present pastor is Rev. J. J. Either. 

TOWN OF WHITE CREEK. 

This town lies in the southeastern part of Washington County, and 
is bounded on the north by Jackson, east by Vermont, south by Rens- 
selaer County, and west by Cambridge. The Taghanic Mountains 
traverse the northern part of the town, but the southern portion is 
rolling land. The Owl Kill is the principal stream; it enters the town 
near Cambridge village and, flowing in a southerly direction, empties 
into the Hoosick below Center White Creek. The Owl Kill has quite 
a number of tributaries, principal of which is the North White Creek. 
Little White Creek rises in the eastern part of the town and flows 
directly into the Hoosick. 

The name of the town was given to it by the early settlers from 
Pelham, who named their locality "White Creek," from the whiteness 
of the bed of the stream running through it, and also from the clear- 
ness of its waters, which contrasted strongly with the stream coming 

[60J 



482 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

from the north, which they name Black Creek. The name has held 
ever since. 

The town is made up from the Cambridg-e, Schermerhorn, Lake, 
Wilson, Van Cuyler, Bain, Grant and Campbell Patents. The exact 
date of the first settlers coming into White Creek is not known, but 
the town began to be taken up between the years 1761 and 1765. The 
early history of part of this town is so closely connected with that of 
Cambridge that much of it has already been given in the annals of 
that town. Among the early settlers in White Creek were : Thomas 
and James Ashton, John Allen, Dr. William Richards, Zebulon Allen, 
David Sprague, Seth Chase, Joseph Stewart, Asa Rice, Paul Cornell, 
John Harroun, Thomas M. Cool, John Wood, Jonathan Hart, Aaron 
Van Cuyler, Rev. William Waite, Joshua Gardner, John Corey, Ed- 
ward Aiken, Isaac Lacy, Simon Covell, David Preston, Joseph Mosher, 
Simon Fowler, Josiah Dewey, Hercules Rice. John Younglove, Austin 
Wells. 

White Creek was, at first, part of the town of Cambridge, but in 
1815 it was erected into a separate town by act of the Legislature. 

The supervisors and town clerks from that date down to 1900 were: 
Supervisors— 1S16-23. William Richards; 1S24-26, Robert Wilcox ; 1827-2S, Clark 
Rice; 1829-30, M. F. Palmer; 1831, George W. Jermain; 1832, John McKie; 1S33, 
Andrew Cole; 1834, John A. Rice; 1835-36, James McKie; 1837, Stephen Barker; 
1838-39, Henry Rice; 1840, C. S. Ransom; 1841-43, Stephen Barker; 1844-45, David 
Niles; 1S46-47, Freeman A. Fuller; 1848, D^-er Pierce; 1849-51, Garrett W. Wilcox; 
1852, Palmer D. Gardner; 1853, John Hubbard; 1854. John McKie; 1855, John K. 
Dyer; 1856-57, Freeman A. Fuller; 1S58, Thomas Ellis; 1859-60, George Barker; 
1861-62, John Larmon; 1863-64, George Barker; 1865, G. W. Wilcox; 1866-68, Hiram 
Sisson; 1869-70, Clarence D. Keynoa; 1871. William Eldridge; 1S72, James Ellis; 
1873, William Eldridge; 1874, Charles C. Cottrell; 1875, James Ellis; 1876-7S, Hugh 
Tabor; 1879, Charles C. Cottrell; 1880, Samuel W. Crosby; 1881-82, Willard Lawton; 
1883-S4, John James; 1885-86, Lewis Coulter; 1887-89, Hiram Sisson; 1890-91, Lewis 

E. Nicholson; 1S92-97, Henry E. Perry; 1898-1900, Forest E. Kenyon. 

Town Clerks — 1816-19, ^^^ Parmely; 1820-23, Clark Rice; 1824, Johnson D. 
Stewart; 1825, M. F. Palmer; 1826, Philip N. Draper; 1827-28, M. F. Palmer; 1829, ' 
Norman Clark; 1830, George W. Jermain; 1831, M. F. Palmer; 1832, Andrew Cole: 
1833, John A. Rice; 1834-39, Burdick G. Allen; 1840-41, Reuben Powers; 1842-43, B. 

F. McNitt; 1S44-45, B. P. Croker; 1846-47, Dyer P. Sisson; 1S48, R. K. Crocker; 
1849, William Brown; 1S50, Loomis W. Gunn; 1&51. John Hubbard; 1852-53, J. E. 
Knickerbocker; 1854-55, Josiah H. Merchant; 1856, Thomas H. Lake; 1857, Charles 
C. Cottrell; 185S, M. P. Barton: 1859-60, Fletcher Baker; 1861-62, Hiram Butts; 
1863, Franklin Fowler; 1864-66, Xury J. Majmard; 1867-70, Warren E. Hawkins; 
1 871, J. H. Merchant: 1S72, E. L. Nicholson; 1S73-74, William P. Robertson; 1875- 



GAZETTEER OF TOWNS— WHITE CREEK.' 483 

76, Warren E. Hawkins; 1877, Clark Rice; 187S, E. J. Fuller; 1879-S4, J. F. Robert- 
son; 18S5-91, W. L. Hitchcock; 1892, Jerome B. Joslyn; 1893-98, Lewis E. Nichol- 
son; 1899-1900, Arthur K. Lansing. 

This town is historically associated with the Revolutionary War. 
The English under Baum marched across it when moving upon Ben- 
nington. This force entered the town from the northwest, traversing 
the present road which forms the boundary between Jackson and 
Cambridge and following the valley of the Owl Kill. On the night 
of August 13, 1777, Baum encamped at Waite's Corners. The Battle 
of Bennington took place in Vermont just across the line of White 
Creek 

The principal points in this town are: North White Creek, Ash- 
grove, Pumpkin Hook, Center White Creek, Post's Corners, Martin- 
dale Corners and the village of White Creek. 

The village of White Creek has been the business center of the 
town since the Revolutionary days. The first house here was built by 
John Allen and the first store was started by Jacob and Benjamin 
Merritt, who soon afterward located where the Sisson store now 
stands. Edward Aiken built a grist mill which became a cotton fac- 
tory, a woolen mill and a flax mill successively. Tanneries were 
erected by James Allen, Jonathan Hart and Sylvanus Tabor, and 
John Allen also put up a hat factory, Paul Cornell operated two trip 
hammers, George Mann made scythes and Edward Hurd had an axe 
factory here in the early days. 

In 1810 a Union Academy was established at White Creek Village 
by subscription from the principal men of the village, but after a 
promising beginning it declined, was changed into a private school 
and ultimately went out of existence as an educational institution. 

The Baptist society in this town dates back to 1772, when Elder 
William Waite began his labors. The church was formally organized 
in 1779 and Elder Waite was the first pastor. In 1788 their first 
church building was erected, but remained in am uncompleted condi- 
tion until 1808. This edifice was rebuilt in 1855. The parent con- 
gregation being at Waite's Corners, a branch was established at 
White Creek in 1796 and both congregations ultimately came under 
the charge of one pastor. The church at White Creek was dedicated 
in October, 1855. 

Friends' meetings in White Creek were held as early as 1783 and a 



484 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

meeting house was built in 1785, but this was replaced by a larger one 
in 1804. This edifice was burned down in 1874. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church at White Creek Village was or- 
ganized in 1 83 1 and a congregation of the same sect at Post's Corners 
in 1856. 



[This article, written especially for this historj-, was received too late to go in 
with the town of Salem, and being of historic interest, is inserted here.] 

Shushan United Presbyterian Church was organized on the 6th day 
of June, 1820, as " The First Associate Congregation of Salem " and 
consisted of seventy members in all. The first pastor, Rev. James 
Waite, was ordained and installed July 6, 1825. The second pastor 
was Rev. David Gordon, and he was succeeded by Rev. David Wish- 
art French. The next was Rev. Hugh Brown and the fifth Rev. J. 
B. Clapperton, who was followed by Rev. R. J. Cunningham. Then 
Rev. D. G. McKay was called and installed as pastor, who was suc- 
ceeded by Rev. S. W. Douthett. The latter was installed December 
14, 1897. At the present time (1900) the congregation numbers 196 
members. In 1879, during the pastorate of Rev. R. J. Cunningham, 
the church removed from their former location one mile east of the 
village of Shushan to the village, where a new and beautiful church 
edifice was built, largely through the liberality of the Low family. 
The present elders are W. J. McCollum, John McGeoch, George M. 
Foster and William McGeoch. 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 485 

CHAPTER XXVI. 
NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 



PRINTING AND PUBLISHING IN SALEM. 

History of the Salem Review Press. 
By T. a. Wright. 

For about fifty-nine years previous to the establishing of the Salem 
Press, which in 1885 was consolidated with the Salem Weekly Re- 
view, and is now (1900) published as the Salem Review Press. Salem 
had been the literary as well as the legal center of Washington 
County, and in fact of all that part of the country lying north of 
Albany. One newspaper had been maintained here almost continu- 
ously during these years, and a part of the time two public journals 
were published. Though, with few exceptions, no marked literary 
ability had been displayed by their editors, still the papers were great 
stimulators to public education and social advancement, were all pow- 
erful politically, and largely instrumental in developing and enriching 
the state, as well as the county. 

While in this sketch the writer contemplated recording only the his- 
tory of the Review Press, with brief allusions to the characteristics 
and qualifications of the men who at various periods have guided its 
course through the storms of political upheavals, through wars and 
rumors of wars, and the social and religious changes of a half century, 
he is sorely tempted, as a prelude, to review the lives and works of 
these pioneers in the field of journalism, whose names and deeds 
became so familiar to him during his early connection with the craft 
in Salem. 

First and foremost of them all was the man who, in all probability, 
penned the ' 'Address to the People, " published in the Times or National 
Courier, in the first issue (June i, 1794) of that the first newspaper pub- 
lished in Washington County — St. John Honeywood. His early train- 
ing and education at Yale College, under the guidance of its distin- 
guished president. Dr. Ezra vStiles, in whose family he lived, his poetic 
genius, artistic abilities and marked literary attainments, enabled him 
to set a high standard in this virgin field for those who were to con- 



486 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

tinue in the responsible work of keeping their readers informed of 
what was going on in their midst, and in the old world from which 
so many of them had recently fled. 

George Gerrish was the publisher of the first newspaper in Salem, 
which expired in less than a year. It was succeeded, in 1795, by the 
Washington Patrol, with Honeywood as editor and William Wands as 
publisher. Either the field was too poor, or the business management 
inadequate, for notwithstanding Honeywood's literary ability, this 
second effort at journalism in Washington County failed in a few 
months. 

Then came Henry Dodd, with a combination of business and edito- 
rial ability, and if half was true of him that the writer heard during 
his apprenticeship in the Salem Press office nearly forty years ago, the 
word " fail " was not in his vocabulary — at least not to be applied to any 
of his undertakings. With the energy, wisdom and tenacity of pur- 
pose of this man behind it, the third newspaper in Washington 
County, The Northern * Centinel, started on a successful career, and, 
excepting a brief period, Salem has ever since maintained a public 
journal. 

Mr. Dodd was joined by a partner, David Rumsey, about 1803, and 
The Northern Centinel became The Northern Post. James Steven- 
son, Jr., joined the firm in 18 14, and the name was again changed to 
the Washington County Post. Mr. Rumsey retiring soon after, the- 
business was continued by Messrs. Dodd & Stevenson until 1 830-1, 
when it was sold to Mr. Dodd's sons, Edward and Henry W. 

Judging from some of the books and pamphlets which the writer 
has examined, printed by these early craftsmen, it is evident that 
they were not only possessed of an extensive plant, but were capable 
and painstaking printers. 

Henry W. Dodd died in 1834, but Edward continued publishing the 
Post imtil 1835, when he sold out to William A. Wells. Thus it will 
be seen that this family of Dodd, father and sons, for oyer thirty 
years conducted a public newspaper, in .Salem, and were probably the 
most capable and successful journalists and printers the town has 
ever known. 

Another family, the Gibsons, four generations of Vv'hich, at various 
times, divided their energies between law and journalism in Salem, 

* Spelled, as was then the custom, with a C. . 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 487 

all brilliant writers, did much to elevate the literary standard of the 
press in this county, as the files of the various papers they conducted 
and enriched with their contributions, bear witness. 

The successor of the Dodds had been publishing a paper at White- 
hall, in this county, and he consolidated the two journals and con- 
tinued them as one at Salem, under the name of The County Post 
and North Star, until 1837, when the establishment was sold to 
Thomas G. Wait, and again resumed the name of The Washington 
County Post. 

Once more, in 183S, the paper changed proprietors and James Gib- 
son first tried his hand at journalism. The high standard maintained 
by the Dodd regime had not been continued under Mr. Gibson's two 
immediate predecessors, but the brains and indomitable energy of this 
young lawyer instilled new life and vigor into the paper and stamped 
him as not only a master of law but of journalism, and during the 
two years in which he was the publisher the Post gained an enviable 
reputation and became a great power in politics. 

In January, 1841, Mr. Gibson sold the establishment to William B. 
Harkness who continued the publication until 1845, when F. B. 
Graham became the editor and proprietor by purchase. Associated 
with him for a time was Clark W. B. Martin. The paper continued 
to be published until 1848, when its proprietor became financially 
embarrassed and The Washington County Post expired. Other 
writers have claimed that it was only a case of suspended animation, 
because the old hand press upon which the paper had been printed, 
came into the possession, nearly a year later, of one Robert G. Young 
who used it in printing a newly established newspaper at North 
White Creek, which he named The Washington County Post. This 
paper is now published at Cambridge and claims to have been estab- 
lished in 1798, but it is straining the law of heredity too much to 
admit its direct descent from any paper ever published in Salem. 

That The Review Press has a legitimate claim to collateral decent 
from the first paper published in this town justifies the writer in 
embodymg in its history the foregoing accotmt of its predecessors. 

As before stated during a part of the period covered by this sketch 
Salem sustained two public journals. In 1803 The Washington Reg- 
ister was established by John M. Looker, who after two years was 
succeeded by John P. Reynolds, whose ability soon made the paper 
one of the best in the state and gave it a wide circulation. In 1806 



488 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

he was appointed one of the state printers, retaining the office for 
three years. 

With Henry Dodd and his partners conducting one prosperous 
weekly and Mr. Reynolds another, during the following decade jour- 
nalism, publishing and printing in Salem reached high water mark. 
The printing of these two establishments was extensive and of a high 
character. Well preserved specimens of which can still be found in 
all the large public libraries in the United States and in many private 
collections of books. Here, in 1806, was printed, in Mr. Reynolds' 
office, "Hume's History of England," four octavo volumes, of over 
600 pages each. The text is set in long primer type, with foot and 
marginal notes in minion. The typography is excellent and the 
presswork clean, sharp and even, giving little evidence of the inking 
ball and other crude implements and material then in use. Brains, 
good taste and mechanical skill are very much in evidence, not only 
in the printing, but in the binding and steel plate portraits of English 
sovereigns which adorn the work. This history was printed for Mr. 
Packard, an Albany publisher, and was a corresponding edition to 
" Smollet's Continuation of Hume and Bishop's Life of George the 
III.," bringing the history down to the beginning of the nineteenth 
century; a work of great importance and interest at the time, as is 
shown by the list of 500 subscribers obtained before its publication. 
The following residents of Salem were among the number: Abram 
Allen, William K. Adams, Seth Brown, J. L. Billings, Philo Curtis, 
Otis Clapp, Asa Fitch, L. B. Foot, James B. Gibson, William McFar- 
land, George McWhorter, John McNaughton, W. F. Morrison, Samuel 
Nelson, J. P. Reynolds, (100 copies), David Russell, Samuel Smith, 
A. C. Saunders, John Savage, Charles Warford, Samuel Warford and 
William Williams. Among other books printed by these early prin- 
ters the writer has examined copies of " McEwen's Essays on Subjects 
of Divinity," "The Child's Instructor," a schoolbook much used; 
" Dr. Watt's Catechism for Children," Dr. Proudfit's "Ruin and 
Recovery of Man," a full bound duodecimo volume of 412 pages; 
"Owen on the CXXX Psalm," Washington's Farewell Address," 
printed for the Washington County Benevolent Society, 181 1, a neat 
little volume, half-bound in green morocco; "Dr. Clark's Farewell 
Letter to his Former Congregation," seventy-two pages, 181 1 : " Dr. 
Proudfit's Theological Works," four volumes, 1815; "Speculative 
Masonry," by Salem Town, 2S4 pages, 1818, and numerous preten- 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 489 

tious pamphlets and tracts. A beautiful edition of Burns' Poems, 
with the author's life, and extracts from some of his letters, was also 
printed here in 1815, two volumes, 24mo. This edition is now 
very rare. 

The Associated Reformed Church in America had imported all their 
psalm books from Scotland, until the embargo of 1807 and the War of 
1812, when the supply from this source was cut off. Dr. Proudfit 
induced Mr. Reynolds to print an American edition, the Doctor him- 
self reading and revising the proofs. A most accurate and well 
printed book was the result, and the work of Salem's printers was in 
nearly every Associate Reformed church in America in a short time. 
These are only a few of the many books printed by these printers. 
Two complete bookstores were carried on in connection with these 
printing offices, selling their own and other publications, thus draw- 
ing to Salem the literati of all northern New York. 

For ten years Mr. Reynolds continued to publish The Register. 
He was succeeded in January, 1816, by Timothy Haskins. Three 
years later (1819) he sold the paper to James B. Gibson, the first of 
four of the name who have been connected with the press in Salem. 
Mr. Gibson was a prominent lawyer, but soon proved that journalism 
was also in his line, for he enlarged and otherwise improved The 
Register and for three years edited it with marked ability, and until 
1822, when Beriah Stiles became editor and publisher. He also 
retained the paper about three years, when in 1825 the establishment 
was purchased by Reynolds & Warren. In less than a year Mr. 
Warren disposed of his interest to his partner who conducted the bus- 
iness until 1827, when Air. Reynolds left Salem and a Mr. Patterson 
continued the publication with Alexander Robertson as editor, until 
1830, when the publication of The Register ceased. 

This left the Dodds in full possession of the field and for twelve 
years only one newspaper was published in Salem. In 1842 William 
B. Harkness, who, as before stated, was publishing The Post, and 
John W. Curtis started a temperance paper and called it The Wash- 
ingtonian. It was printed in the office of The Post, but expired after 
a few issues, and again Salem had but one newspaper, and this too 
ceased to exist in 1848, as before stated. 

That a railroad had entered the County at Whitehall and other and 
more fertile fields for journalism had opened in adjacent towns is the 

[61] 



490 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

only reason the writer knows for the suspension of all publications in 
Salem; but the fact remains that for some time in the year 1848 until 
May 21, 1850, the town was without a local newspaper. On the latter 
date William B. Harkness resumed the publication of a journal here 
and called it The Salem Press. It was the largest paper that had up 
to this time been printed in the county, and in fact almost as large as 
any since published here. For five years Mr. Harkness continued its 
publication, when, in October, 1855, he sold the business to Daniel B. 
and Benjamin F. Cole. These brothers had learned their trade on 
the Press, and besides being expert printers, possessed good journal- 
istic abilities, and the business flourished under their management. 
In 1859 Benjamin F. sold his interest to his brother, and for ten years 
thereafter Daniel B. Cole carried on the business alone. Mr. Cole, 
though a genial gentleman, was a strict partisan in politics, and in 
the writer's memory the Press office was the rendezvous for the 
choice local spirits of the Democratic party; such men as Marinus 
Fairchild, William A. Russell, John R. Lytle, James H. Carswell, 
Asa Munson, of Hebron ; Joseph Connor, Josephus Martin, and many 
lesser lights, met here to discuss party measures. Leaders of the 
opposing party often dropped in, to cross swords with ye editor, and 
he was ever ready and could give them royal battle. 

In 1869 Col. Solomon W. Russell purchased the Press establishment 
and for nearly three years it flourished under his management. The 
dignity of journalism was never more forcibly exemplified in Wash- 
ington County than during Col. Russell's connection with the Salem 
Press. Up to this time ordinary local happenings of every day life 
were completely ignored by the press. Nothing short of murder, 
burglary, fire or suicide were ever written up, and these but sparingly. 
Marriages and deaths were published, however, and the obituary poet 
was tolerated then, as now. Col. Russell opened the columns of his 
paper, in a moderate degree, to local items, but it remained for his 
immediate successors to adopt the new school ideas and establish the 
local department. In December, 1871, Col. Russell sold The Salem 
Press to Messrs. Gibson and Robertson. James Gibson, Jr., the third 
of the name and family who had been engaged in journalism, brought 
to the publication the wealth of his splendid literary abilities, and its 
columns were filled to overflowing with the products of his fertile 
pen. Abner Robertson was his associate, and for about six months 
these two young lawyers worked together, and the popularity of the 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 491 

Press grew apace. Political differences arose, however, and Mr. 
Robertson retired. Mr. Gibson continued to publish one of the best 
papers ever issued in the county until July, 1875, when the establish- 
ment was sold to Henry D. Morris. Mr. Morris was an experienced 
nev/spaper man, and the Press, under his management, retained its 
business standing, but lost its editorial ability. He continued its 
publication imtil September, 1880, when Elisha P. Thurston became 
editor and publisher. 

In December, 1877, Daniel B. Cole again entered the field with a 
new paper, which he named The Salem Weekly Review. In con- 
nection with his newspaper Mr. Cole became a large publisher of law 
blanks, and it began to look as though printing and publishing was 
getting back to its old-time prosperity and importance in Salem 

Mr. Morris and Mr. Cole were both veteran editors and practical 
printers, and they divided the old and brought to the town such new 
patronage as they could control, and again Salem showed that it could 
sustain two local newspapers. 

In Mr. Thurston the Press had a splendid writer, but a poor busi- 
ness man, and while he published a good paper, financial embar- 
rassments came. In the meantime Daniel B. Cole had taken his son, 
Beverly F. Cole, into partnership. The father died November 8, 1884, 
and his other son, Harry E., entered into partnership with his brother, 
Beverly, and they continued the publication under the name of Daniel 
B. Cole's sons, until July, 1885. when they purchased The Salem 
Press of Mr. Thurston, and consolidated the two papers, and the 
names as well, into The Salem Review Press, which they continued 
to publish until December, 1886, when they transferred their interests 
to Hon. James Gibson, who continued its publication, as editor and 
proprietor, until his death in June, 1897. 

Although forty-six years had passed since Judge Gibson had pub- 
lished and edited The Washington County Post in Salem, he had 
been a large contributor to the different Salem newspapers, especially 
of historical, genealogical and biographical matter. Once more in 
full possession of the Press he began the publication in its columns 
the results of his long and deep historical' researches, and one after 
another appeared, in quick succession, his " Bench and Bar of Wash- 
ington County," " Graves and Grave Yards of Washington County," 
"Old Families," and other histories, thus preserving records of great 
value, not only to his own, but to future generations, and making 



492 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The Review Press not only unique and interesting locally, but widely 
known outside of the county and the state. For several years pre- 
previous to 1897 James Gibson, Jr., grandson of Judge Gibson, had 
charge of the local department of The Review Press, and also acted 
as its business manager. 

On the death of Judge Gibson his daughter, Mary Gibson Wright, 
came into possession of the paper by inheritance, and she is now 
(1901) the proprietor and publisher, with William L. Campbell, busi- 
ness manager. 

The Salem Axiom. 

The Salem Axiom was founded December 11, 1885, by Robert 
Cruikshank, who continued as editor and proprietor until January i, 
1895, when, owing to ill health, he was forced to retire from the busi- 
ness, and sold the paper to his son. Robert A. Cruikshank, the present 
proprietor. 

The Axiom was first published as an eight column folio. The out- 
side pages were printed in New York and the inside pages on a 
Washington hand press. A year after the establishment of the paper 
the business had increased to such an extent that a cylinder press was 
purchased, and three years later the " ready prints " were discarded 
and the entire paper was printed in the office. January i, 1896, 
owing to the increased demand for advertising space, the paper was 
enlarged to the more modern form, the six column quarto. For 
many years the office was located in the Central House block. In the 
fall of 1896 a site was purchased on Main street, south of the First 
National Bank, and the following spring a handsome two story build- 
ing, with iron front, was erected thereon. Into this building the Axiom 
moved June i, 1897. The building is equipped with steam heat, electric 
lights and steam power, and is occupied solely by the Axiom. The 
equipment of the office is strictly up to date in every particular, and 
the office enjoys a large and increasing patronage. The Axiom has 
always been Republican in politics and has been an earnest advocate 
of the principles of the party. The Axiom has been unusually pros- 
perous since its inception, and its ever increasing list of subscribers 
attests its popularity in the territory which it covers. The present 
proprietor was born and raised in the village of Salem, and was edu- 
cated at Washington Academy. In July, 1900, he was appointed by 
President McKinley as Postmaster of the Salem postoffice. 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 493 



The Sun, Salem. 

William W. Bingham began the publication of The Sun at Salem 
in 1889, and has published that paper continuously ever since that 
date, and is at present the senior editor of the town. 

William W. Bingham was born in Philadelphia, Penn., March 27, 
1864, and educated at the Washington Academy, at Salem, N. Y. He 
is of Scotch-Irish parentage, being the son of Joseph and Sarah Bing- 
ham, who emigrated to this country from Belfast, County Down, 
Ireland, about i860. The subject of this sketch is a direct descendant 
of the Binghams, of Closkelt, Castlewellan, County Down, Ireland. 

He began his apprenticeship in the office of the Salem Press, at the 
age of thirteen, and has uniformly followed the vocation of a printer. 

Mr. Bingham has filled a political position in the Capitol at Albany 
for several winters past, his prominence as a Republican worker" 
beinof thus recoarnized. 



The Washington County Post. 

The following history is from the pen of its present able editor, 
Rev. John G. Smart: The late Hon. James Gibson, in his carefully 
prepared history of "The Press of Washington County," has pre- 
served the record, as he also had copies of the earliest editions, and 
of its latter years a complete file. Two attempts had been made to 
establish a county paper at an earlier date. June 18, 1794, The 
Times, or National Courier, appeared. It survived but seven months, 
to January, 1795. ^^y 26. 1796, The Washington Patrol appeared, 
but did not survive through the 3'ear. These efforts, no doubt, 
prepared the way for the more successful effort of January i, 1798, 
made by Henry Dodd. The new paper was named the Northern 
Sentinel. In May, 1803, the name was changed to Northern Post, 
Mr. Dodd having associated with himself David Rumsey, and June 6, 
1814. James Stevenson, Jr., was taken into the firm'. December 21, 
of the same year, Mr. Rumsey retired from the firm and Dodd & 
Stevenson continued the publication, changing the name to the 
Washington County Post. Upon the death of Henry Dodd, Novem- 
ber 6, 1834, Edward Dodd continued to publish the paper. Mr. Dodd 
being elected to a county office, disposed of his interest to William A. 
Welles, of the North Star, a paper established in 1830, and published 



494 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

at Whitehall. Mr. Welles moved to vSalem and consolidated the North 
Star with the Post, and January 7, 1835, it was issued as the County 
Post and North Star. May 17, 1837, under its new owner, Thomas 
G. Wait, the old title of Washington County Post was resumed, and 
retained without interruption down to the present date. Early in 
1 84 1 it was sold to William B. Harkness and published by him until 
the end of 1845. F. B. Graham purchased it, and the first week in 
January, 1846, it appeared under his direction as editor and publisher. 
Two years later his creditors took possession, and sold the press and 
type to Robert G. Young. Up to this time it had been published in 
Salem. Mr. Young removed the plant to North White Creek, now 
part of Cambridge village, and continued the publication. In 185 1 
ill health compelled Mr. Y'oung to relinquish his charge of the Post, 
and it was purchased by Edward Gardiner April 7, 1854. R. King 
Crocker was associated with him, and in July of the same year Mr. 
Crocker became sole owner, and it was published by him for eleven 
years. November 17, 1865, by purchase, it came into the possession 
of James S. Smart, who was sole publisher and editor until March i, 
1869, when Henry Noble bought an interest, and became joint pub- 
lisher with Mr. Smart. Under this management the Post enjoyed its 
greatest prosperity, its regular circulation passing above 4,000. The 
greatly increased income of the office was expended upon the plant, 
and in providing it a substantial and permanent home, which it has 
continued to occupy to the present. This partnership continued until 
the death of Henry Noble from Bright's disease. Early in 1883 he 
went south in a vain quest for restored health, and returning, reached 
the home of his sister in New York, where he died May 21, 1883. 
The sole proprietorship returned to Mr. Smart. 

August 8, 1884, R. R. Law, who had served in the office for eleven 
years, became a partner, and the firm was known as James S. Smart 
& Company from that date until July i, 1889, when the partnership 
was dissolved bymutual consent, Mr. Law's engagements demanding 
his release. January 6, 1891, the announcement was made of the 
incorporation of the Washington County Post Company, with Hon. 
James S. Smart as president, and Mitchel McFarland as business 
manager. 

September 3, 1892, the writer became a stockholder, and was made 
treasurer and business manager. Owing to the long continued ill 
health of the editor, Hon. James S. Smart, which for several years 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 495 

had prevented his rendering any service, in July, 1896, by vote of the 
directors of the Post company the editorship was transferred to the 
writer, who had practically filled the place of editor for the four pre- 
ceding years. During all these years the Post has been emphatically 
the representative of the people of the county, independent in its 
utterances, loyal to the principles of the political party which it repre- 
sented, outspoken against abuses of power and betrayal of trust, 
whether within the party, or by the opposition. The same spirit 
which Henry Dodd infused into its first issues has remained through 
all these years. The interest of the people first, of the party next, and 
of self last. Often has this rule been followed at much sacrifice. Yet 
to this is due the' great prosperity and the long continued life and 
influence of this the oldest and, we believe, the best journal of 
Northern New York, and of our own county. 



The Sandy Hill Herald. 

The Sandy Hill Herald has existed for over three-quarters of a 
century, and during all that time has had but three proprietors, while 
hundreds of graduates have gone out from its ofiflces. The following 
history of this fine sheet, as well as that of the other papers which 
have existed in Sandy Hill, is reproduced largely from the columns 
of the Herald's great anniversary edition of March 9, 1899. 

The name of the original sheet was the Times, and it was founded 
in 1 818. James Wright's name appears as the publisher of the Times 
in 1822, but later the names of Emons & Wright were printed on the 
first page as publishers. Emons' name was dropped subsequently, 
and Wright's remained. After a brief career the Times was suc- 
ceeded by the Political Herald, with James Wright, publisher. Before 
a year the word "Political" was dropped, and it has remained the 
Herald up to the present. 

In 1841 James Wright disposed of his interest to a young journey- 
man printer who worked in the office, Elisha D. Baker. The Herald, 
under his guidance, was a strongly Democratic sheet. It had a large 
circulation, and few country papers were more frequently quoted. 
He conducted the Herald twenty-five years, and in the fall of 1865, 
his health failing, he disposed of his interest to Messrs. Brown & 
Dwyer, two practical printers, residents of Albany. 

John Brown published a paper at Cobleskill, some years before 



496 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

coming to Sandy Hill. He was a native of Scotland. His partner, 
John Dwyer, still conducts the Herald, having bought out Mr. 
Brown's interest after they had been together three years. Under 
the management of Brown & Dwyer the politics of the Herald was 
changed to Republican, and it has remained such up to the pres- 
ent time. 

Brown & Dwyer took possession of the Herald in the fall of 1865, 
the first number making its appearance January 4, 1866. It was at 
that time a four page paper, but the sheet was only 22x32, six columns 
to the page. The old size was continued until January 6, 1871, when 
the sheet was enlarged to 28x44. A power press and other modern 
improvements were added from time to time, and these additions 
gradually brought an extended parish of readers. 

In 1876, while the Herald was located in a building where the 
Toole Block now stands, the office was destroyed by fire, and every- 
thing in it, except books and papers. The publication of the paper 
was not discontinued for a week, however. New material was soon 
purchased, and a finer office than the old one took its place. For 
about a year the office was located in Philip Riley's block, but was 
subsequently removed to Flood's Exchange. In the fall of 1887 the 
proprietor purchased the property on the corner of Main and Forest 
streets, and there located the Herald permanently. This was the first 
time that the Herald had been in its own home, after sixty-five years 
of moving from one place in the village to another. 

In the fall of 1895 many changes were made in the mechanical 
department of the office, in preparation for the production of a larger 
paper, and the bright, up-to-date typographical appearance of the 
paper today speaks for itself. The assistant editor of the paper is 
Miss Agnes C. Dwyer, daughter of the proprietor, who looks after the 
local department, and is also bookkeeper. 

To the credit of the Herald it can be said that it has always been 
clean and honorable. Its editors have studiously guarded the paper 
from anything indecent, or pandering to depraved taste. With large 
experience, friends without stint, and a lovely growing village, there 
is no reason why the Sandy Hill Herald should not keep step to the 
onward progress of the place, and be a credit to its progressive and 
liberal citizens, who are equal to any and surpassed by none. 

^^lajor John Dwyer, editor and publisher of the Sandy Hill Herald, 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 497 

was born in Ireland, but came to America from Dublin when a youth, 
and learned the printing trade in Albany, N. Y. 

Early in 1861 he enlisted, as a private, in Captain Michael O'Sulli- 
van's Company, in Albany, N. Y., which company was subsequently 
consolidated with John Brannigan's and mustered into service for 
three years, or during the war. This company became Company K, 
of the 63d Regiment. Private Dwyer soon rose from the ranks, earn- 
ing the following promotions: 

Sergeant Company K, at " Camp California," Alexandria, Va., 
December i, 1861; First Sergeant, Company G, at Yorktown, Va. , 
May 10, 1862; First Lieutenant, Company K, and Adjutant, October 
25, 1862; Captain Company K, December 16, 1862, and Major (Brevet) 
"for gallant and meritorious services," May i, 1866. The last rank 
being conferred by Governor Reuben E. Fenton, of New York. 

Major Dwyer's regiment formed a part of Gen. Thomas F. Meagher's 
Irish Brigade, First Division, Second Corps, Army of the Potomac, 
and saw some of the hardest fighting of the war, and with it he par- 
ticipated in the following battles and operations: The Siege of York- 
town, the Battle of Fair Oaks, Battle of Gaines' Mill, Battle of Savage 
Station, Battle of White Oak Swamp, Battle of Malvern Hill, rein- 
forced the army of General Pope, Second Bull Run, and covered the 
retreat of the Union Army to the defences of Washington, September 
13, 1862; Battle of South Mountain, Battle of Antietam, Battle of 
FredericksbttTg and Battle of Chancellorsville. The losses of the 63d 
were heavy, for they were always in the fighting, and in the summer 
of 1863 the regiment did not have 150 men left fit for duty. The 88th 
and 69th regiments were in about the same condition, and the war 
department ordered that these three regiments of the brigade be con- 
solidated into a batallion, and that the supernumerary officers be 
honorably discharged. 

Major Dwyer received his honorable discharge at this time. At 
the battle of Antietam he received a dangerous wound in the head 
from a rifle bullet. 

In 1866 Major Dwyer became connected with the Sandy Hill Herald 
as a partner, and in 1869 became sole proprietor. For the past thirty- 
two years he has conducted this paper and made it what it is. 

On April i, 1898, he was appointed Postmaster at Sandy Hill, N. 
Y., by President McKinley. On July i, 1900, the office was advanced 

[62J 



498 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

from third to second g-rade, and this year, 1901, the department 
decided to introduce Free Delivery in Sandy Hill, the gross business 
having reached $10,000, and over, the preceding fiscal year. 



The first paper published in Sandy Hill was the Times, started in 
1818. E. Gilmore Stover was the publisher, and Adonijah Emons the 
editor. It was printed in old small pica type, and used iron column 
rules, manufactured at the blacksmith shop of Nicholas Northup. It 
was a four page paper, with five narrow columns to the page, size of 
sheet, 19x23 inches. It was worked on an old wooden screw press. 
It was established under the auspices of the Bucktail Tammany party, 
to counteract the influence of the Northern Post, which espoused the 
cause of DeWitt Clinton. 

In 1826 Adonijah Emons commenced the publication of the Sun, a 
four column paper, which was continued several years. 

In the spring of 1829 W. & S. P. Hines commenced the publication 
in Sandy Hill of a paper under the title of Independent Politician. 
It was, as its name indicated, independent in the full sense of the 
word. It strongly advocated the nomination of Henry Clay for presi- 
dent. Its editorials were carefully and ably written by Stephen 
Hines, the junior publisher, and attracted considerable attention, far 
more so than most country sheets of the time; but the paper ceased 
to exist in about six months, for want of patronage, which its merits 
should have secured for it. 

In February, 1831, William and Stephen Hines issued the first 
number of the Temperance Advocate, the first paper in the world to 
advocate total abstinence from all intoxicating drinks, wine, beer and 
cider included. 

Just how long the Advocate was published in Sandy Hill cannot be 
stated, as but few copies are known to be in existence, probably about 
two years, when it was sold to parties in New York. 

Previous to leaving Sandy Hill Adonijah Emons. in 1832, started and 
published for a time, less than a year, a paper called the Free Press, 
devoted to Anti-Masonry. It was a pauper concern from the begin- 
ning, and was kept alive during its brief existence by contributions 
from leadine Anti-Masons. 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 499 

The Washington County Advertiser was a handsome sheet, 20x28, 
five columns to a page, established November 26, 1879, by George A. 
Nash, of Sandy Hill. It was well printed and newsy. It was trans- 
ferred to Fort Edward, N. Y., the first number appearing there on 
October 27, 1S81. James H. Durkee became associated with Mr. 
Nash, at this time, when the size of the paper' was enlarged to seven 
columns to the page (24x33). The size was further increased to nine 
columns April 26. 1882. 

In 1899 the paper passed into the possession of Irving C. Forte, Jr., 
and under his able management maintains its reputation as a newsy, 
up-to-date paper. It is also well edited and is regarded as one of 
the leading papers of the count}'. 

The paper is now of a very convenient size, comprising eight pages 
of six columns to the page. It has, as it deserves, a good and con- 
stantlv increasinof circulation. 



The Whitehall Chronicle. 

The Chronicle, one of the leading journals of Washington County, 
was founded by the late H. T. Blanchard in the year 1840, and, with 
the exception of a few weeks, it has been published continuously since 
then. It was the second paper published in Whitehall, the first (the 
Emporium) having been established in the year 1823. The publica- 
tion of the Emporium was discontinued after a few years, leaving the 
village without any paper until the first issue of the Chronicle. 

In 1866 the late William H. Tefft became the publisher of the 
Chronicle, which, under his able editorship, rapidly gained popularity 
and influence in the county. After four years of marked success the 
plant was destroyed by fire. The publisher labored under great dis- 
advantages in trying to re-establish the paper. He was prostrated by 
a severe illness, months being required for his recovery. But he per- 
severed, under discouragement. The plant was gradually enlarged 
and supplied with modern machinery. The paper commanded the 
attention of prominent citizens in all parts of the county, and its edi- 
torials were frequently quoted b}^ leading journals in the state. 
Under Mr. Tefft's editorship the Chronicle was more favorably 
regarded, because of its editorials and literary features, than as a 
newspaper, in the literal sense of the word. 



500 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Following Mr. Tefft's death in 1898, his son, Lawrence D. Tefft, 
continued the publication of the paper for a few months, then enter- 
ing into partnership with William B. Inglee, who held a supervisory 
position in the office for more than twenty-five years. Mr. Inglee 
has a thorough knowledge of the printing and newspaper business, 
having been formerly connected with the largest publishing establish- 
ments in Boston and other New England cities. He is one of the 
leading typographical artists in Washington County. The younger 
Mr. Tefft studied journalism with his father, and has been a regular 
contributor to the columns of the Chronicle for many years. Messrs. 
Inglee & Tefft are the editors, publishers and proprietors of the 
Chronicle, and are recognized as an enterprising and reliable firm. 
The Chronicle is Republican in politics. 

The Whitehall Times. 

This paper was the immediate successor of the American Sentinel, 
which was established by J. E. Watkins in June, 1855. But the issues 
of the Democratic paper in Whitehall date back as far as 1823, the 
paper having appeared under several titles, and the Times is the 
natural outgrowth of those early publications. In the spring of i860 
H. T. Blanchard purchased the paper and named it the Whitehall 
Times, but within the year sold it to Captain A. D. Vaughn and W. 
H. Bod well. In 1861 Hon. E. E. Davis became the proprietor, but 
in 1865 disposed of it to Walter J. Donnelly, who was succeeded by 
W. A. Wilkins May i, 1873. Mr. Wilkins died August 2, 1887, and 
Franklin Fisher assumed control of the paper September 19, 1888. 
He conducted it until 1896, when it was purchased by the present 
proprietor and editor, M. C. Reynolds. The Whitehall Times is Dem- 
ocratic in politics and is ably edited, besides being a bright, newsy 
paper, well managed in every department. 

Milo C. Reynolds, the editor and sole owner of this paper, was born 
at Eagle Bridge, N. Y., July 16, 1871. and is a son of Eben C. and 
Helen E. (Vrooman) Reynolds. He received his early education in 
the district schools and later in the public schools of Troy, N. Y., 
and at the Troy High School where he had a two years' course. He 
then entered the Troy Business College, covered the entire course in 
four months and graduated high. His father's and mother's families 
were the very highest in their respective localities and his youthful 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 501 

prospects were bright with an able father behind him, bnt when he 
was in the High School his father died, April 15, 1890, and he had to 
leave school and hew out a career for himself. He engaged in busi- 
ness with M. Curtis, general produce merchant, at Eagle Bridge, and 
remained with him one year. The firm conducted the business for- 
merly owned by Mr. Reynolds' father. He then conducted a job 
printing office in Eagle Bridge for about a year; the trade of printing 
he managed to acquire by his own efforts, without serving any 
apprenticeship in a printing office. 

On July 16, 1892, his twenty-first birthday, Mr. Reynolds began 
his career as a newspaper man by issuing "The Politician" at Eagle 
Bridge. It was a small paper of six pages, each page six by nine 
inches, but successive issues grew in size until July 16, 1893, when it 
was made a six column four page paper. The ' ' Politician" was a strong 
Democratic paper and wielded considerable influence in political mat- 
ters in the northern part of Rensselaer County. This sheet was 
continued until November, 1894, when Mr. Reynolds moved to Cam- 
bridge, Washington County, N. Y., taking his newspaper plant with 
him, and launching "The Cambridge Local," which he issued for six 
months, when he came to Whitehall and entered into partnership 
with Franklin Fisher m publishing the "Times." The plant of the 
"Cambridge Local " was moved to Whitehall and the papers were con- 
solidated. In September, 1896, Mr. Reynolds purchased Mr. Fisher's 
interest in the business, and has since been sole proprietor and pub- 
lisher of the Times. 

In politics Mr. Reynolds has always been a sturdy Democrat, 
inheriting these principles from his father, who was a leading Demo- 
crat in Rensselaer County, where he held the offices of County Clerk, 
School Commissioner, Sheriff and Supervisor for the towns of Hoosick 
and Petersburgh ; the last named for several years. Although never 
a nominee for any office, M. C. Reynolds has always taken a keen 
interest in political conventions, to the end that the very best men in 
the party might be nominated. 

As a newspaper man Mr. Reynolds has achieved note by being 
independent to a degree, and with a trenchant pen he has maintained 
a high reputation for the "Times," which is considered one of the lead- 
ing newspapers in Northern New York. He is a practical printer, as 
well as an able editor, and is capable of working in any department of 
newspaper work. 



502 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In fraternal circles he is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. 
O. F., and Tancred Lodge No. 303, Knights of Pythias. He is a Past 
Grand of the former, and a Past Deputy Grand Chancellor of the 29th 
District of the Grand Domain of New York, Knights of Pythias. 

On June 29, 1898, Mr. Reynolds married Miss Grace E. Howe, of 
East Poultney, Vt. 

The Granville Sentinel. 

James L. McArthur, editor of the Granville Sentinel, is a well 
known figure in journalism and politics throughout the state. He 
was born in the town of Putnam, Washington County, N. Y., in 1855, 
and received his early education in the public schools of that vicinity. 
He is the son of William and Elsie (Lillie) McArthur, whose parents 
were natives of Scotland. 

William McArthur was a farmer and wagon maker, and the son, 
James L., became familiar and proficient in both occupations of his 
father, who was also a lawyer. Justice of the Peace and Supervisor of 
his town for many years. While on the farm Mr. McArthur became 
correspondent for several newspapers and a regular contributor on 
different subjects. On reaching his majority he went to Granville 
and started the Granville Sentinel, the first issue of which was on 
September 25, 1875. In 1880 he sold out to George A. Weller, of 
Waterford, N. Y., after which he started the Morning Telegram at 
Plattsburgh, N. Y., the first daily paper in that county. After six 
months he sold the Telegram to a stock company and accepted a posi- 
tion as night editor of the Glens Falls Times, with Addison B Colvin. 
In 1883 he returned to Granville and resumed the management of the 
Sentinel, which he has conducted ever since. 

Through the strength of the editorials of the Sentinel, many of 
which were reproduced verbatim in nearly every Republican news- 
paper in the state, it was made possible for Addison B. Colvin to 
become State Treasurer. The Sentinel was the first to urge his can- 
didacy, and the ready pen and untiring political work of its editor did 
not cease labor until Mr. Colvin was elected. In recognition of his 
services Mr. Colvin appointed him to the position of Corporation 
Clerk in the Treasurer's office, a position v/hich he still holds, now 
serving his seventh year in Albany, which duties, together with the 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 503 

work of editing and managing the Sentinel, make him one of the 
hardest workers in the county. 

James L. McArthur is, above all, original in thought, word and act. 
His paper, which has a large circulation, in Vermont as well as New 
York, is eagerly sought, both by those who want the news, and by 
men who have an eye to politics, "to see what Mac has got to say" 
editorially. Rich in originality, choice in expression, endless in 
vocabulary, a master at driving the nail where it belongs, and a past 
master at argument, sarcasm, wit, humor or pathos, Mr. McArthur is 
recognized as one of the ablest editorial writers in the state. 

On the 15th day of January, 1878, Mr. McArthur was united in 
marriage to Miss Anna W. Lewis, daughter of Nathan Lewis and 
Isabella (Peters) Lewis, of Granville. They have one daughter. 
Belle L. 

Mr. McArthur is a Mason, member of Washington Commandery, 
of Saratoga, Whitehall Council, Oriental Shrine, of Tro}', Royal Arca- 
num, Red Men and the Odd Fellows. 



The People's Journal. 

This paper, which is the only one in Greenwich today, was founded 
in 1842 by John W. Curtis, who was its editor until 1868, when he 
sold out to H. C. Page. On Jtme i, 1869, Mr. Page disposed of the 
paper to C. L. Allen, Jr., of Salem, who had personal charge of it 
until February i. 1870, when he installed John King as editor. After 
some changes Mr. Allen again assumed charge of the paper and Shell 
Corliss assisted him in its publication. 

About the year 1873-4 Meeker & Mandell purchased the paper, 
then Mr. Mandell assumed control and published it until August 3, 
1876, when it passed into the hands of H. C. Morhous by purchase. 

For a quarter of a century Mr. Morhous has published the People's 
Journal and placed it upon a par with the best county newspapers; 
through its columns worthily representing the thriving village of 
Greenwich to the outside world, as well as ably advocating sound 
Republican principles. He has twice enlarged the paper, first to an 
eight-column sheet and subsequently to its present quarto size. 

H. C. Morhous was born in Keeseville, Essex County, N. Y., 
December 20, 1842, the year in which John W. Curtis founded the 
People's Journal, of which Mr. Morhous was destined to become the 



504 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

editor and proprietor. He was educated in the district schools and 
learned the printing business in the office of the Northern Standard 
at Keeseville. On August 28, 1862 Mr. Morhous enlisted in Company 
C, 123d New York Regiment, and^served until the close of the war in 
1865. On January 28, 1872, he married Lillie L., daughter of John 
W. and Eliza (Bull) Stickles and they have two children, H. C. Jr., 
and William Morhous. 

In politics Mr. Morhous is a Republican and is a member of the 
Greenwich Board of Trustees. He also served as clerk of the village 
for several years. He was the organizer of Post Cook, No. 326, G. 
A. R., at Greenwich, and is a member of Ashler Lodge, No. 584, F. & 
A. M. 



Greenwich was, for a time, a hot bed of ephemeral newspapers, the 
People's Journal holding the field today no doubt upon the principle 
of the survival of the fittest. Prior to 1850 The Banner, The Union 
Village Courant, The Union Village Democrat, The Democratic 
Champion, The Washington County Sentinel, The Union Village 
Journal, The Champion, The Eagle, The Union Village Eagle and. 
the Union Village Democratic vStandard, all came and went. 

The Fort Ann Republic. 

Alvaro Goodenough Van Schaick. was born on the Erie canal boat 
" Powhattan," July 26, 1849, of Yankee-Dutch ancestors, who came 
to Massachusetts and Albany in 1661. An orphan at four, by the 
death of his father, he commenced work away from home when but 
eleven years old, attending school winters, and attaining the printer's 
art by the time he came of age, when he was married to Miss Delilah 
Perry Wood, to whom were born one son, Veve, and a daughter, 
Julia, all of whom are living, at this writing. 

In 1870 the subject of this sketch began his journalistic career at 
Rome, N. Y., continuing that occupation on several newspapers in 
the state; thence, for a number of years, in Michigan, Iowa, New Jer- 
sey and Virginia. Returning to New York in 1880 he engaged in 
manufacturing machinery for ten years, in which occupation he 
became skilled in mechanics. Returning to newspaper work he estab- 
lished the Schaghticoke Press in 1892, which was moved to Troy in 
1894, and merged into "The Republic" — the official organ of the 



NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. 505 

secret political order known as the American Protective Association. 
The order attained a large membership, and a voting strength many- 
times in excess of its enrolled members. It took a leading part in the 
state campaign of 1894, wielding a commanding influence — aided 
largely by the excitement due to the political murder of Robert Ross 
in Troy — and it was potential in hurling the Democratic party from 
power and electing Levi P. Morton governor. Indeed, the order 
made such a powerful impression on state and national politics that 
its influence will be felt for a generation. Besides being editor of the 
official paper, Mr. Van Schaick was chairman of the A. P. A. State 
Committee, and concededly directed its political movements, with 
credit and skill. 

On October 6, 1896, Mr. Van Schaick moved to Washington County 
and established The Fort Ann Republic, a Republican weekly news- 
paper, which at once took rank with the leading political papers of 
the county. 

During intervening years of newspaper work Mr. Van Schaick 
traveled extensively in all the states east of the Rocky Mountains,, 
including the south, which is a prolific source of interest, because of 
its historical associations of early settlement, the Revolution and the 
Civil War. As a pastime he has engaged much in boating, being an 
enthusiastic yachtsman — taking special pride in the fact that he built 
with his own hands a commodious yacht, and the twenty-six horse- 
power compound steam engine which propels it; and for more than 
twenty-five years he has been a licensed United States marine 
engineer. 

In politics Mr. Van Schaick has always been a Republican — except 
that he voted for the electors of President Cleveland — in later years, 
tending to a belief in modern Socialism. 

As a writer he cultivates the analytical, logical, forcible and abrupt 
as best suited to politics, and wields, as said of him by his confreres, 
" a pen of triple bladed sarcasm. " A close student of American history, 
of public men and public affairs, he is intensely American and holds, 
fast to the principles of the founders of the Republic, and bitterly 
opposes alleged " civil service reform " and that aggregation of wealth 
and power into the hands of the few which inevitably leads to pluto- 
cracy and the downfall of American liberty. In religion a Deist, 
free from superstition, and a firm faith that the Power which created 
him will care for his everlasting future. 

[63J 



506 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

CHAPTER XXVII. 
THE BENCH AND BAR. 

The Early Courts — Contests Over the County Seat and the Establishment 
OF Two County Se.a.ts — Location of County Clerk's Office — Erection of 
County Buildings — Changes in Laws, Courts and Elections — Eminent Men 
and Leading Lawyers of the Profession. 

By an act of the Legislature, passed April 2, 1784, the name of 
Charlotte County was changed to Washington County. But previous 
to this, in 1779, an act was passed directing the holding of courts in 
Charlotte County. Six terms of such courts were held, but the first 
court in Washington County, of which there is any authentic record, 
was held in 1786. At that court the first judge was Alexander 
Webster, of Hebron; the associates were Ebenezer Russell, of Salem, 
and David Hopkins, of Hebron. The justices "of the quorum," as 
they were called, were Moses Martin, John McAllister, Albert Baker, 
John Brown and Aaron Fuller. The clerk was Colonel John McRea. 

On February 5, 1787, an act was passed reaffirming the previous 
act relating to Washington County, and ordering that the courts be 
held at Salem. This law provided for a Court of Common Pleas and 
General Sessions of the Peace, to be held at that village three times 
each year. The western part of the county, however, developed so 
strong an influence that on April 21, 1787, the law was changed so 
that one of the three terms should be held at the house of Adiel Sher- 
wood, in the village of Fort Edward. 

The name of Salem being used in these laws made that the perma- 
nent name of the village, superseding the names of " White Creek" 
and "New Perth," which had long been a source of dispute and 
contention. 

In 1 7 91 a petition was circulated asking the legislature to fix the 
county seat permanently at Salem, and to authorize the building of a 
courthouse and jail at that place, there having been no county build- 
ings previous to that time. Fort Edward and the surrounding towns 
resisted this movement, and while the contest was in progress some 
of the river people sought to have the county seat located at Fort 
Miller. The Legislature referred the matter to the board of Super- 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 507 

visors and that body decided upon Salem. The next year Fort 
Edward made an effort to have the vote reconsidered, but in vain. 
Then the people of that part of the county sought to have two county 
seats established, and succeeded so far as to obtain the passage of a 
law directing- that the courts be held as before, a part of the time at 
Fort Edward. No courthouse was ever built there, however, while, 
in 1792, an act was passed directing the county to raise money to 
build a courthouse and jail at Salem. These structures were com- 
pleted in 1 796. 

In 1797 the western county seat was changed from Fort Edward to 
Sandy Hill, where it has remained ever since. The cause of this 
change is attributed to an act of contempt of court committed by Col- 
onel Adiel Sherwood. The court was held in the dining room of his 
tavern at Fort Edward. At the sitting there, in 1796, something put 
the Colonel out of temper, and he invaded the courtroom and ordered 
the judges out, telling them he needed the room for dinner. The 
judges retired, but at the afternoon session sentenced him to jail for 
fifteen days, for contempt of court. At the next session of the Legis- 
lature the western county seat was transferred to Sandy Hill. 

As a rule the sentences of the early courts were very severe; the 
pillory, the whipping post, and even the branding iron being considered 
proper and necessary instruments in the administration of justice. 

In 1806 the county clerk's office was fixed at Argyle, so as to have 
it located at an intermediate point between Sandy Hill and Salem. 

Prior to 1821 justices were appointed by the Governor and Sen- 
ate. In that year a new constitution was adopted, and they were 
appointed by the Board of Supervisors and the Court of Common 
Pleas combined. This rule obtained until 1827, when the law was 
again changed, and they have since been elected by the .people. 

The new constitution of 1846 abrogated the Court af Common Pleas 
and substituted County Courts, the County Judge to be elected by the 
people. Martin Lee, of Granville, was the first County Judge under 
this provision. 

Washington County has had two Chief Justices of the Supreme 
Court: Samuel Nelson, appointed August 31. 1821, and John Savage, 
of Salem, appointed January 29, 1823. 

Justices of the Supreme Court from Washington County were: 
Cornelius L. Allen, from 185 1 to 1859, and Joseph Potter, from 1872 
to 1890. 

The other court officials are given in the county list, see page 376. 



508 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The first courthouse at Sandy Hill was built in 1806, and was 
replaced by the present fine structure in 1873. The present court 
house at Salem was completed in 1871. 

Washing-ton County has been the birthplace or adopted home of 
some of the most distinguished lawyers and judges of the State. In 
the following pages a very complete list of the lawyers of the county, 
past and present, will be found, with a sketch of each. 



Bernard Blair was born in WilHamstown, Mass., in 1801, and 
came to Salem in 1825, where he entered the office of Russell & Allen. 
In 1828 he entered into partnership with Judge Allen and remained 
with him a year. In 1S33 he married Charlotte, daughter of Abraham 
C. Lansing, of Lansingburgh. He was a trustee of Washington 
Academy for many years, and also of the Presbyterian Church. In 
1839 he was elected to Congress. He was a scholar, as well as a noted 
lawyer, and held the degree of M. A. from both Middlebury and 
Williams coUeo-e. He died in 1880. 



Hon. Anthony I. Blanchard was born August 21, 1768, and 
studied law with Cornelius I. Bogart, in New York, from 1784 to 
1787. He was admitted to the bar in 1789, and settled in Salem 
immediately after. In 1796 he was appointed Assistant Attorney- 
General for the district of Washington and Clinton counties. In 1810 
he was appointed first Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He was 
also connected with the military service, in which he attained to the 
rank of Major in 1793. He married Maria, daughter of John Williams. 
He died in 1853. 



Hon. John Savage was one of the notable jurists whose history 
carries us back to the early days of Washington County, and who 
became not only a state, but a national figure. He was born at Salem, 
N. Y., in 1779; graduated froin Union College in 1799; took up the 
study of law and soon became a leader of the county bar. In 18 14 he 
was in the state legislature and was a representative in Congress from 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 509 

December 4, 1815, to March 3, 1819. He next held the office of 
United States District Attornc}' and was State Comptroller from 
February 12, 1821, to February 13, 1823, when he became Chief Jus- 
tice of the Supreme Court. This high office he graced for four years, 
or tmtil 1827. He also served for some time as United States Assis- 
tant Treasurer in New York. In 1829 Union College conferred upon 
him the degree of L.L. D. He died at Utica, N. Y., October 19, 
1863. 



Hex. Charles Crarv, son of Leonard P. Crary, was born at Wil- 
liamsville, Erie County, N. Y., May 2, 1823, and began his career as 
a clerk in a store in Buffalo, N. Y. He was seriously injured by an 
accident July 4, 1837, and after recovering entered the printing office 
of Abraham Dinsmore, learning the trade, and remaining in this 
office until 1842, when he went to IMilwaukee and entered the office of 
his brother, Leonard P. Crary. In February, 1844, he began teach- 
ing and attending the Academy at Aurora, N. Y In 1845 he began 
the study of law in the office of Hon. John Crary, at Salem, N. Y., 
and was admitted to the bar in 1847. On December 6, 1849, he began 
the practice of his profession at Salem and in 1859 removed to New 
York city. He was Justice of the Peace for four years' at Salem, and 
was also Postmaster under President Pierce. In New York he was 
elected to the Assembly from the twenty-first district. He was a 
member of the Board of Education in New York and revised the table 
of teachers' salaries, his table being yet in use. He was also Presi- 
dent of the East Side Association for the promotion of municipal 
reform. In 1858 he published " Laws and Practice in Special Pro- 
ceedings," commonly known as " Crary 's Practice," and he also issued 
a work on Limited Partnerships. Both of these works are standards. 
Charles Crary married Mary E., only child of Henry Matthews, of 
Salem. He died November ^o, 1889. 



David A. Boies was born in Greenwich April 28, 1819. He grad- 
uated from Union College in 1839, and then entered his father's law 
office. He was admitted to the bar in 1842, and in 1852 succeeded 
his father as Surrogate. In 1858 he married Margaret Gifford, daugh- 
ter of Elihu Gifford, of Easton. 



510 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Joseph Boies was born at Blandford, Mass., October 2, 1783, and 
graduated from Williams College in 1808. He studied law with 
Savage & Crary, at Salem, N. Y., and with Charles Ingalls, at Green- 
wich. He was admitted to the bar in 18 ri. He began the practice 
of law in Cambridge, but returned to Greenwich in 1812, where he 
remained until his death in 1866. He was Judge of the Court of 
Common Pleas for several years, and in 1S47 was elected to the office 
of Surrogate. 



Hon. U. G. Paris. — The bench and bar of Washington County 
contained no more notable man of his day than Hon. U. G. Paris, and 
yet it was not only as a jurist that he left his impress upon the history 
of Washington County, for he was a strong factor in its public affairs^ 
and even its finances and commercial prosperity were enhanced 
through the operations of his splendid mind. 

He v/as born at Fairfield, Herkimer County, N. Y., August 14, 1819, 
but his parents removed to Harrisburgh, in Lewis County, while he 
was still quite young. There he was reared upon a farm, which he 
assisted in clearing and reclaiming from the wilderness. Thus his 
opportunities for acquiring an education were necessarily limited, and 
at the age of twenty-one he went to Watertown, Jefferson County, 
where he learned the trade of carpenter; yet as if aware of his own 
capabilities, and as if catching a glimpse in the distance of the bright 
Career which was his destiny, he devoted his leisure hours and 
evenings to reading and study, while he was working at his trade. 
He made rapid progress in his studies and his tastes leading him 
toward professional life, he abandoned his trade and entered the 
office of Judges Rosecrans and Ferris, with whom he studied law, and 
at the end of the prescribed course was regularly admitted to the bar. 
Shortly after his admission to the bar he removed to Sandy Hill, 
which he made his permanent residence, and which was destined to 
become the theatre of his successful life. He was cotemporary with 
many brilliant legal minds in northern New York and with those he 
came in contact from the very outset of his career, yet he always 
proved himself the peer of the ablest among them, and soon was 
regarded as one of the safest counsellors and strongest advocates of 
the bar in the state. 

He always made an exhaustive pi-eparation of his cases to which he 
was able to direct the energies of a splendid mind and always fought 




HON. U. G. PARIS. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 511 

them to completion. As a consequence he attracted a large and remu- 
nerative practice, and his fame and fortune increased simultaneously. 

If among his many admirable traits one could be selected as the 
most pronounced, it was his sterling honesty, so that while his prac- 
tice grew and his wealth increased, he continued to rise higher and 
higher in the esteem and confidence of his fellow men. 

In politics Mr. Paris was at first a Whig, and afterwards allied him- 
self with its successor, the Republican party. In 1859 he was nomi- 
nated and elected Surrogate of Washington County for a term of four 
years, and was re-elected in 1863 for a second term. In this office he 
was highly popular, because his profound knowledge of the law was 
ever tinctured with the finest sense of justice. 

He did much to foster business enterprises in Sandy Hill and was 
one of the founders of the Peoples National Bank, of which his son, 
Hon. Charles R. Paris, is now president. 

Although he did a great deal for his community and generation — 
and indeed for the present generation, for the results of his work sur- 
vive — his life was mainly devoted to his profession. He was a man 
of clear perceptions and strong convictions, who planted himself 
squarely on the right, and was absolutely fearless in defense of his 
position. 

In 1850 Mr. Paris married Cordelia Rogers, daughter of Hon. 
Charles Rogers, of Sandy Hill, who was also a prominent citizen of 
the county, and served both in the State Legislature and as a member 
of the XXVIIIth Congress. Their children living are Hon. Charles 
R. Paris, County Judge of Washington County; Dr. Russell C. Paris, 
a noted physician of Albany; Preston Paris, Treasurer of the Stand- 
ard Wall Paper Company at Sandy Hill, and two daughters, Mrs. 
Katharine P. Walters, of New York City, and Mrs. Susan A. Robert- 
son. One son, Lincoln Paris, was a well known banker, and was 
Cashier of the National Bank of Sandy Hill at the time of his death, 
which occurred suddenly, in July, 1898, He had previously been 
cashier of a bank in Cawker City, Kansas, and returned east in 1896. 

During the latter part of the summer of 1891 the health of Hon. U. 
G. Paris began to fail, and he took a trip to the southern states and the 
West Indies, but without any beneficial result. He died September 
15, 1892, and was buried in L^nion Cemetery, between Sandy Hill and 
Fort Edward. 

The life of Mr. Paris is a notable proof of Disraeli's statement, that 
*'if a man be true to himself he can always realize his ambitions," for 



512 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

he raised himself from a farmer's son to a position of both fame and 
fortune, entirely through his own efforts. 



Leonard Gibbs was born at Cambridge, Washington County, N. 
Y., April 2 1, 1800, and was educated for a law^^er and practiced his 
profession in his native town for some years. He was District Attor- 
ney of the county for a number of years and was once elected to the 
Legislature. He removed to New York in 1839. 



Henry Gibson, son of James B. Gibson, was born at Salem, June 
29, 1818, and studied law with his brother, the late Judge James Gib- 
son. In 1845 he went to Whitehall and formed a partnership with E. 
E. Davis which continued until 1S52. He then practiced alone until 
1857 when he and O. F. Davis entered into partnership, which was 
dissolved in 1866. From that time he was again alone. He was 
Associate County Judge from 1859 to 1863, and was a member of the 
Whitehall Board of Education for many years. He died in 1878. 



Hon. Cornelius Lansing Allen who served from 1851 to 1859 as a 
Justice of the Supreme Court of New York, from the Fourth Judicial 
District, was a son of Hon. David and Elizabeth (Lansing) Allen, and 
was born at Lansingburgh, N. Y., July 17, 1800. Jvidge Allen was 
graduated from Princeton College in 18 18, read law with Hon. David 
Russell, of Salem, and was admitted to the bar in 182 1. He was suc- 
cessively in partnership with ^Ir. Russell and Hon. B. Blair, and then 
was by himself until he retired from the active practice of his profes- 
sion. Judge Allen was elected to the Supreme Court in November. 
185 1, and served for eight j^ears. His career as a lawyer and a judge 
was marked by zeal and quickness to grasp the salient points of a law 
case. He held many offices of trust and responsibility in his village, 
being President of the Washington Academy and the National Bank 
of Salem. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 513 

John Willard. — Among the distinguished jurists who have been 
residents of Washington County during the past century, Hon. John 
Willard deserves a prominent place. 

As a lawyer it was said of him by Chancellor Walworth : "It might 
truly be said of him, semper paratus, semper fidelis. As a judge no 
judicial officer ever discharged his official duties more uprightly or 
more faithfully." 

He was born in Guilford, Conn., on the 20th of May, 1792, and was 
descended from two Puritan families, who founded Guilford in 1639. 

He was graduated from Middlebury College in August, 181 3, and 
while at college was associated with the late Silas Wright and Hon. 
Samuel Nelson. He was admitted as an attorney of the Supreme 
Court in 181 7. and entered upon the practice of law in Salem, and 
soon attained, by his talents and industry, an enviable eminence in 
his profession. 

He was appointed a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Febru- 
ary, 1833, and was Surrogate until, in 1836, on the elevation of Esek 
Cowen to the Supreme Court, he was appointed Circuit Judge and 
Vice Chancellor of the Fourth Judicial District, which position he 
occupied until the organization of the judiciary under the constitution 
of 1846, when he was elected one of the Justices of the Supreme 
Court, which latter office he held until 1854, and during the last year 
of his term of service was a member of the Court of Appeals. 

In 1837 he removed to Saratoga Springs, which was his residence 
during the remainder of his life. He was the author of several legal 
treatises, which are valuable contributions to our jurisprudence. 

As a politician he was attached to the Democratic party and decided 
in his political opinion, but on the breaking out of the rebellion he 
took strong grounds in favor of a united support to the government 
in its struggle. 

In 1 86 1 he was nominated by the Union convention for senator and 
subsequently endorsed by all other parties and elected without oppo- 
sition. By his efforts the confusion in the laws respecting murder 
and the rights of married women was removed, and simple and sen- 
sible statutes passed in relation thereto. 

As an advocate, a judge, a legislator, he was alike eminent and 
accomplished; and in his private life irreproachable and blameless. 

[64j 



514 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

It has fallen to the lot of few men to acquire and leave behind them 
such an honorable and unsullied name. 

He was married in 1829 at the Troy Female Seminary to Miss Eliza 
C. Smith and enjoyed during his life the respect and esteem of his 
aunt, Mrs. Emma Willard, the founder of the Troy Female Seminary 
and the pioneer in the cause of female education. He lived to bury 
his only child in 1853 and his estimable wife in 1859 and cut off thus 
from his family ties, his great heart turned with affection and solici- 
tude to the welfare of his country. He died at his residence, Sara- 
toga Springs, on the 31st day of August, 1862. 



Charles Fryer Ingalls was born at Salem, Washington County, 
N. Y., January 28, 1795. His parents were Charles and Cynthia 
(Russell) Ingalls. Charles Ingalls was a graduate of Dartmouth Col- 
lege and shortly after his graduation removed from Methuen, Mass., 
to Salem, N. Y., where he read law and in 1802 was admitted to prac- 
tice in the courts of the State of New York. Shortly after his admis- 
sion he opened the first law office in Union Village, (now Greenwich) 
Washington County, N. Y., and there continued the practice of his 
profession until his death, which occurred September 2, 181 2. 

Charles Fryer Ingalls adopted the profession of his father and was 
admitted to the bar, October 9, 18 19. He pursued the practice of his 
profession successfully until a short time previous to his death, which 
occurred March 5, 1857. He held the office of District Attorney and 
Judge of "the Court of Common Pleas of Washington County and in 
1835 represented that county in the legislature of the State of New 
York. He was highly esteemed for his learning and ability as a law-- 
5^er and for his probity as a citizen. His two sons, Hon. Charles R. 
Ingalls and Thomas Ingalls read law with their father and became 
his partners in the business. 

In i860 Hon. Charles R. Ingalls removed to Troy and formed a 
partnership with Hon. David L. Seymour. Thomas Ingalls continued 
in practice with his father until the death of the latter and thereafter 
conducted the business until his decease, which occurred June 18, 

1873- 

Charles Fryer Ingalls, the subject of the present sketch, married 
Mary Rogers, the daughter of Nathan and Dorothea Rogers, October 





5>^«.^ 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 515 

22, iSiS, and they had three children, the two sons already named 
and one daughter, Mary Ingalls. Of the three, Hon. Charles R. In- 
galls is the only survivor. Thomas ingallswas graduated from Trin- 
it3^ College, Hartford, Conn., with distinction, and was regarded as a 
man of marked talent. 



Hon. Charles R. Ingalls, one of the most distinguished members 
of the bench and bar of New York State, was born at Greenwich, 
Washington County, N. Y., September 14, 18 19. After his school 
days he entered, the office of his father, who was a lawyer, and began 
the study of law. In June, 1844, he was admitted to practice in the 
Supreme Court and the Court of Chancery, New York State. Shortly 
after his admission to the bar, he and his father formed a partnership, 
which continued until i860, when Charles R. Ingalls went to Troy 
and settled permanently. He at once formed a partnership with 
David L. Seymour under the firm naine of Seymour & Ingalls, and 
the firm soon became recognized as leaders in the legal profession in 
Troy and the surrounding counties. 

In 1863 Charles R. Ingalls was nominated for Justice of the Su- 
preme Court for the Third Judicial District, and his election followed. 
In 1870 he became ex-officio a member of the Court of Appeals, and 
in 1871 he was nominated by both political parties for the same office 
and was elected for a term of fourteen years. 

In 1877 he was appointed for a term of three years by Governor 
Liicien Robinson, a member of the General Term of the Supreme 
Court, first department, which comprised the City of New York. 
From 1885 to 1889 he held the same office, but resigned in 1890 on 
account of having reached the age limit for Justices of the Supreme 
Court. 

Judge Ingalls served in all twenty-seven years on the Supreme Court 
bench, and during his judicial career, he ranked among the foremost 
jurists of America, and today he is one of the most highly respected 
members of the legal profession in New York State. 

Judge Ingalls has been a trustee of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 
for the last twenty-five years, and is also a trustee of the Emma Wil- 
lard Institute. 

On November 3, 1880, Judge Ingalls married Margaret L. Marvin 



516 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of Troy, and they have one daughter, Margaret Marvin Ingalls, born 
in 1884. 

The Ingalls family is of English descent, Edmund Ingalls, the 
founder of the family in America, came from Lincolnshire to Massa- 
chusetts in 1629. Four members of the family were soldiers in the 
Revolutionary War, and James, an uncle of Judge Ingalls, was killed 
in the battle of Bunker Hill. Charles Ingalls, (grandfather) was a 
native of Methune, Mass. He graduated from Dartmouth College, 
read law at Salem, N. Y., and was admitted to the bar of this state 
in 1802. He then settled in Greenwich, N. Y., and opened the first 
law office in that village. His son, Charles P., father of Judge In- 
galls, took up the same profession which he followed from 181 9 until 
a short time prior to his death in 1870. He served as District Attor- 
ney, County Judge and Judge of the Court of Appeals. 

Judge Ingalls' mother was Mary Rogers, daughter of Nathan and 
Dorothea (Cleveland) Rogers, who came to Greenwich from Canter- 
bury, Conn., in the year 1800. 



Hon. James Gibson was born at Salem, Washington County, N. 
Y., September 5, 1816. He was the son of James B. Gibson, who was a 
prominent lawyer of the county. James Gibson was educated at the 
Salem Washington Academy and studied law, first in the office of his 
uncle, Samuel Stevens, and afterwards with Cyrus Stevens and John 
H. Boyd of Whitehall. He was admitted to the bar in 1836 and from 
that date up to his death he pursued the practice of his profession in 
Salem. He was an able lawyer and consequently successful in his 
profession. In November, 1850, he was elected County Judge and 
served four years. In 1866 he was elected State Senator for the dis- 
trict composed of Washington and Rensselaer counties. He was 
editor of the Washington County Post from 1838 to 1841 and has left 
behind him a high reputation as a literary man and an historian. 
The material which he collected relative to Washington County is 
very valuable. 

Judge Gibson was a Republican from the foundation of the party 
up to 187 1 when he became a Liberal Republican. During the latter 
years of his life he was identified with the Democratic party. 

He always took great interest in military affairs and in 1840 raised 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 517 

a company of light infantry, of which he was made Captain. This 
company was attached to the 50th Reg-iment, State Militia, of which he 
ultimately became Lieutenant-Colonel. On the disbandment of the 
50th he was attached to the 30th Regiment, N. G. N. Y., and was pro- 
moted to the rank of Colonel. In 1867 he was made Brigadier-General 
of the 12th brigade, which disbanded in 1874. 

Judge Gibson was prominently associated with the Masonic Fra- 
ternity, the Odd Fellows, the Episcopal Church, and took an active in- 
terest in all important public matters. He was president of the 
Washington County Historical Society; a member of the American 
Geographical Society; atrustee of Evergreen Cemetery, and a director 
of the National Bank at Salem. 

On October 17, 1841, Judge Gibson married Jane, daughter of Ira 
and Wealthy Ann (Gilbert) Woodworth. There only surviving child 
is Mary, wife of Mr. T. A. Wright, publisher, of New York City. A 
son, James Gibson, a lawyer of Salem, is deceased. 



Hon. Luther Wait was born at Fitz- William, New Hampshire, Feb- 
ruary 7, 1788. Receiving his preliminary education for college he 
took a four years course at Burlington L'niversity, Vermont, where he 
graduated with honor in 181 1. 

Whereupon, choosing the legal profession, and wishing to become 
a student in the office of some prominent lawyer in the State of New 
York, he was favored with an excellent letter of introduction and 
commendation from the Governor of Vermont (Governor Van Ness) 
to Roger Skinner, then an eminent lawyer residing at Sandy Hill, N. 
Y., and on the strength of such letter received a cordial welcome from 
Mr. Skinner and entered his office as a law student, and in due time 
was admitted to the bar as an attorney of the Supreme Court, and 
became a partner of the Hon. Henry C. Martindale (then a prominent 
lawyer residing at Sandy Hill) under the firm name of Martindale & 
Wait, which firm continued for some years. Among other students 
in their office, was Silas Wright, afterward L^'nited States Senator and 
Governor of the State. 

Upon the dissolution of the firm of Martindale & Wait, Mr. Wait, 
having received the degree of Counsellor of the vSupreme Court and 
Counsellor in the Court of Chancery, continued the practice of the law 
at Sandy Hill until his death, which occurred April 20, 1857. 



518 AVASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Hon. Luther Wait was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of 
Washington County, Surrogate of the County, Master and Examiner 
in Chancery and for many years a Justice of the Peace, which office 
he held at the time of his death. 

At a meeting of the bar of the county in his memory, held at Salem 
Circuit, appropriate eulogistic resolutions were adopted; the same 
being reported to the meeting by a committee, consisting of Judge 
Rosekrans, Gen. Martin Lee and Judge Luther J. Howe. 

Judge Wait was much esteemed by his brother lawyers, as a good 
lawyer, a man remarkabl}^ industrious and devoted to the interests of 
his clients and as scrupulously honest and honorable in all his 
dealings. 

Among the important suits with which he was connected was the 
Chancery suit of Rogers vs. Rogers in which he was solicitor for the 
plaintiff and which after a contest lasting seven years was finally de- 
cided in the Court of Errors in favor of the plaintiff. (The case is 
reported in Chancery in I Hopkins' Reports 515, I Paige R. 188, and 
in the Court of Errors III Wendell 503.) It is a leading case upon the 
important questions raised and decided therein. 

Judge Wait was a prominent member of the Democratic party up 
to the time of the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, which repeal 
to him was inexcusable, and for which he joined the Republican party 
under Fremont, opposed to the extension of slavery, and was a mem- 
ber of that party when he died. 

He left surviving him six sons and four daughters, viz: Lucian D., 
Laysel B., A. Dallas, Jerome, Sheridan and George Addison Wait, 
and Charlotte E., Milcena B., Susan E. and Aurelia Wait. 

His son Lucian D. Wait learned the trade of a jeweler at Troy and 
went to Skaneateles to reside and remained there for many years and 
until his death. 

Laysel B. Wait was educated as a lawyer and. on admission to the 
bar went to St. Paul, Minnesota, to practice law, associated with the 
law firm of Hallingshed & Becker of that place. 

Not liking the practice of the law he engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness in that city and subsequently removed to California where he 
died. 

Jerome Wait went to California in 1854 to engage in the mining 
business, and has ever since resided there, following that occupation. 

Sheridan Wait, after his admission to the bar as a lawyer in 1853, 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 519 

in accord with the advice of Horace Greely to young men in the East 
to "Go West and Grow up with the Country,'" went first to Ten- 
nessee and remained there nearh' two years, engaged principally as a 
teacher. 

He then concluded that he would be better pleased to be located 
farter North, and therefore went to St. Louis, on his way to Illinois 
where he fortunately met and was introduced to Governor French 
(then Governor of Illinois) who happened to be at the time in that 
city. The Governor advised him to open a law office at Decatur, 111., 
which the Governor said presented a good opening for a young enter- 
prising lawyer. And the Governor very kindly gave him a letter of 
introduction to an influential friend of his at Decatur. 

Mr. Wait, upon the suggestion of the Governor, opened a law office 
at Decatur, the county seat of Macon County, Illinois, and in a short 
time entered into partnership with the late Gov. Richard J. Oglesby, 
then a young lawyer who had recently come from Kentucky, his na- 
tive state, and settled at Decatur to practice law. The firm of Ogles- 
by & Wait were doing a large and profitable business until the com- 
mencement of the Civil War. When the first gtm was fired on Fort 
Sumpter they closed their law office and both entered the Union 
Army, and when Colonel Oglesby was appointed to the command of 
a brigade, Mr. Wait was commissioned Assistant Adjutant General 
with the rank of Major. At the close of the war Major Wait returned 
to Decatur and resumed the practice of the law. In 187 1 he removed 
to Chicago and engaged in the real estate business and continued his 
residence in that city until his death, 28th of July, 1879. At the time 
of his death he was President of the Chicago and Calumet Dock Com- 
pany. 

Major Wait in early life was a Democrat, an active and efficient 
member of that party, but never seeking or desiring official prefer- 
ment, choosing rather to serve in the ranks as a private citizen. But 
just before the war he was elected Mayor of the city of Decatur on 
the Union ticket. 

Upon his return from the war he joined the Republican party and 
became one of its most staunch and true supporters, and for six years 
was a prominent and much esteemed member of the Republican State 
Committee of Illinois. 

He served one term as Canal Commissioner of that State. 

Soon after his death a meeting of the Macon County Bar was held 



520 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

and appropriate resolutions adopted in memory, as stated therein, of 
"Sheridan Wait, whose record was never sullied and who was a 
brave, true, gentle, kind man and a wise and honorable lawyer." 

Major Wait was buried with military and civic honors in Green- 
wood Cemetery at Decatur, July 31st, 1879, the funeral being from the 
residence there, of his old partner and life-long friend Governor Og- 
lesby. 

George Addison Wait, the youngest son of Luther Wait, enlisted as 
a soldier in the 121st New York Regiment at Syracuse where that 
regiment was being organized. 

A county boimty of $500 was being paid there to each soldier en- 
listing in that regiment. Before the regiment left for Washington 
the County Treasurer paid the soldiers such bounty. George Addison, 
on his name being called to receive the boiinty, directed the Treas- 
urer to forward the amount ($500) due him to the Secretary of the 
United States Treasury as a mite donated by him to the United 
States Government for war purposes. 

The County Treasurer accordingly forwarded the same, stating the 
circumstances, to Secretary Chase, who acknowledged its receipt in 
a letter, characterising the gift, under the circumstances as entirely 
unique, and praising in the highest terms the donor for displaying 
such a noble and unselfish spirit of patriotism, when joining the army, 
as a private soldier. 

The 121SI regiment was attached to the 6th United States Army 
Corps and this young man, as a private soldier (without missing a 
day of service in the field) was with that regiment at Fredricksburg, 
Gettysburg, and all the battles in which the 6th Corps took part up to 
and including the battle at Spottsylvania Court-House the nth of 
May, 1864, in which he was severely wounded, thereby losing his 
right arm, amputated close to the shoulder, the following day, by an 
army surgeon. He was forced in consequence to remain for months 
in hospital at Alexandria and Philadelphia. Being unable to do 
further service as a soldier, he was mustered out and honorably dis- 
charged. He was a remarkably exemplary and worthy young man 
in all his ways and habits. At the time of his death he was residing 
in New York city doing clerical work, (having acquired the ability to 
write well with his left hand) and was studying with a view of becom- 
ing a lawyer as soon as practicable. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 521 

Charles Hughes was born February 27, 1822. In 1837 he began 
the study of law in the office of H. B. Northup, at Sandy Hill, N. Y. 
He was admitted to the bar in January, 1845. In 1852 he was elected 
to Congress. In 1857 he was elected Clerk of the Court of Appeals. 
In 1862 he took an active part in organizing the Washington County 
Regiment, 123d New York Volunteers. In 1877 he was elected Sen- 
ator of the State of New York. On April 26, 1850, the law firm of 
Hughes & Northup was formed, which existed until the death of Mr. 
Hughes, August 10, 1887, a period of more than thirty-seven years. 



Hon. Roswell Weston, who served as First Judge of Washington 
County from 1825 to 1827, was a son of Zachariah Weston, a Revolu- 
tionary soldier, and was born February 24, 1774. He read law with 
Hon. John Woodsvvorth, of Troy, and was admitted to the bar and 
commenced practice at Fort Edward, but soon removed to Sandy Hill, 
where he remained until his death, which occurred August 18, 1861. 



Robert Doig was born in the town of Greenwich, Washington 
County, N. Y., March 13, 1810. He graduated from Union College 
in 1836 and in 1838 completed the study of law with Boyd & Billings 
at Whitehall and was admitted to the bar. He soon became a leading 
lawyer in Whitehall and held various public offices. 



James C. Hopkins, removed from Sandy Hill to Granville, about 
1840, where he formed a co-partnership with Isaac W. Bishop, under 
the firm name of Bishop & Hopkins. He was State Senator in 1854 
and 1855. Afterward he went to Wisconsin, where he became United 
States District Jvidge. 



David Wilson went from Sandy Hill to Whitehall, became a Mem- 
ber of Assembly in 1852, and Clerk of that body in 1858. He was an 
author as well as a lawyer, and wrote the book, "Solomon Northup.'" 

[65J 



522 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Henry B. Northup, of Sandy Hill, was a lawyer, noted for his elo- 
quence and persuasive power with a jury. He was District Attorney 
from 1847 to 1850, and Member of Assembly in 1856. He died in 
1877. 



Orville Clark, who with Judge Weston, formed the co-partner- 
ship of Weston & Clark, was a man noted in his profession as well as 
in the biisiness world. He was a State Senator from 1844 to 1848. and 
was Major General in the Militia, and father of the late Asabel Clark. 
He died about the year 1863. 



Nathaniel B. Milliman was for some time a partner with Gen. 
Orville Clark, at Sandy Hill, and subsequently was associated with 
Hon. U. G. Paris. He was elected County Clerk in 1852 and moved 
to Arg-yle. At the expiration of his term of office he moved to Fort 
Edward where he died in 1885. 



Henry C. Martindale, one of the most noted barristers, of Sandy 
Hill, was Surrogate from i8i6to 181 9, District Attorney from 1821 
to 1828, Congressman from 1823 to 1831, and was appointed Canal 
Appraiser in 1840, by Governor Seward, which office he held until 
1843. He died about 1858, and was the father of John H. Martindale, 
who was Attorney General in 1866-67. 



Hon. Marinus Fairchild was born at Sackett's Harbor, N. Y., 
November 21, 181 1. He was educated at Watervliet, N. Y., studied 
law in the City of Albany and in the office of his uncle, Hon. John 
Crary, at Salem, N. Y., and was admitted to the bar in 1833. From 
that date until 1846 he was actively engaged in the practice of his 
profession at Salem, N. Y., when he removed to Albany, where he 
remained about five years, returning to Salem upon the death of Mr. 
Crary, and remaining there during the remainder of his own life. 
He was for several years a partner with Mr. Crary. 




CTj 




/ 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 523 

Mr. Fairchild was not only a prominent lawyer but also held the 
office of Surrogate of Washington County from January i, 1856, to 
December 31, 1859, and was District Attornej' from 1877 to 1881. 
In politics he was a Democrat, but was highly regarded by large 
numbers of his political opponents. He was a man of superior talents, 
yet very unassuming and when he died on January 20, 1887, the bar 
of the county met in the Court House at Sandy Hill, on the 25th of 
that month, and passed a set of resolutions which show the high es- 
teem in which he was held. He married Harriet Campbell in 1836. 
His parents were Lewis and Laodicea (Crary) Fairchild. 



Judge Lvman Hall Northup, one of the oldest and best known 
practitioners at the Washington County bar, is a natiye of the town of 
Hebron, Washington County, N. Y., and was born December 18, 1821. 
His parents were John H. and Anna (Wells) Northup. He studied 
law in the law office of his brother, H. B. Northup, and was admitted 
to practice in December, 1847, and in April, 1850, formed a partner- 
ship with Hon. Charles Hughes, which lasted until the latter's death 
in August, 1887. From 1888 to 1892 Judge Northup was associated 
with Young & Kellogg, as senior counsel. Since 1892 he has been 
engaged in practice alone. 

Judge Northup has always been public-spirited and identified with 
every movetnent for good, as far as his means would allow, and a man 
in whose integrity and sincerity the public have the utmost confi- 
dence. 



Hon. Joseph Potter was born in the town of Easton, Washington,. 
County, N. Y., November 17th, 1820. He received his preliminary 
education at the district schools in Easton, a Quaker boarding school 
at Chatham, Columbia County, N. Y., of which the afterwards cele- 
brated Hon. William S. Fullerton, was at that time preceptor, and at. 
the Union Village Academy, Greenwich, N. Y., an institution then 
celebrated as a preparatory school. He entered the sophomore class 
of Union College at Schenectady, N. Y. , and after a distinguished 
course was graduated with honors in the class of 1842. Subse- 
quently his Alma Mater conferred upon him the degree of L.L D. 



524 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Having decided to enter the legal profession he studied law with 
Judge Culver and Judge A. D. Baker at Greenwich, and subsequently 
in the office of Wheaton, Hammond, Doolittle & Hadly at Albany. 
In 1845 he was admitted to the bar as Attorney and Counsellor of the 
Supreme Court and as Solicitor in Chancery. 

While in the office of Culver & Baker he taught in the Union Vil- 
lage Academy at Greenwich. Shortly after his admission to the bar 
he came to Whitehall and formed a partnership with judge William 
H. Parker, who died in 1849. Judge Potter's subsequent partners 
were J. D. Blount, Hon. A. H. Tanner, and his son, J. Sanford Pot- 
ter, all of whom were students in his office. 

From the \-ery commencement of his legal career, Judge Potter 
evinced not only i;nusual ability as a lawyer, but also attained a 
reputation for integrity and soundness as a counsellor, so that early 
in his career he becatiie prominent in the front rank of the lawyers of 
northern New York. 

The citizens of Washington County were not slow to recognize his 
abilities and worth, and in 1849 he was elected District Attorney of 
the County, and at the expiration of his term of office was re-elected. 
He also served as District Attorney from September 7, 1862, until 
January i, 1863, serving out the term of Colonel A. L. McDougall, 
who had gone to war with his regiment. In 1863 he was elected 
County Judge, and to this office also, was re-elected at the expiration 
of his first term, so that he held the position until December 31, 187 1. 
In November, 187 1, he was elected Judge of the Supreme Court, and 
after serving out his full term of fourteen years was re-elected in 
November, 1885, to the same office and held the position until his 
term expired by constitutional limitation, at the age of seventy years, 
in 1890. He also served three years in the Court of Appeals, Second 
Division, and received his appointment thereto from Governor Hill, a 
Democratic Governor. 

Although eminent as a jurist, it was as a judge that Hon. Joseph 
Potter achieved his greatest distinction. His rendering and interpre- 
tation of the law, in which he was thoroughly posted, was ever tem- 
pered with the finest and highest sense of justice, and it was almost 
futile to carry a case to the Court of Appeals from his decision. In 
his conduct of the business of the courts he was always prompt, ener- 
getic and decisive, and cases brought before him were not allowed to 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 525 

lag, but were carried through to an issue; nor were his decisions long 
delayed. Accuracy and dispatch characterized him in all his duties. 

One instance will illustrate well his character and greatness as a 
judge, because in this case he was brought face to face with one of 
the strongest and most dangerous forces of his age, and, through his 
ability and magnificent courage, has made himself a name in the 
judicial history of America. 

Having been called ;ipon in the usual way, to hold a term of court 
in the City of New York, and relieve the judges of that city, over- 
burdened with an accumulation of business, he was sitting in Special 
Term when ah application was made for a stay of proceedings, pending 
an appeal, in the case of Jacob Sharpe, convicted of bribery. 

An applicatitm of this kind, under the circumstances existing in the 
Sharpe case, is ordinarily made without opposition and granted as a 
matter of course; but Sharpe had been convicted, according to the 
claims of the Metropolitan newspapers, solely through their efforts, 
and with great unanimity and persistence they demanded that the 
provisions of the constitution and the statutes of the state applicable 
to cases of this kind should be ignored, and that a stay of proceedings 
upon the judgment of conviction, pending an appeal to the higher 
courts upon questions of law and evidence, involving the legality of 
his conviction, should not be granted. The subject became one of 
universal interest, and of supreme importance. The press threatened 
the judiciary, and upon Judge Potter, standing alone, rested the re- 
sponsibility and the burden of asserting its independence. 

Speaking of the subject in hand, the Hon. Daniel Dougherty, one 
of America's greatest lawyers and greatest orators, said in his address 
before the State Bar Association of New York, in the Senate Chamber 
of the Capitol in Albany, January 17, 1888: "Scarcely known in 
America in the past, it stirs the present, and may foreshadow grave 
troubles in the future. It concerns us as citizens as well as lawyers. 
It may test to the quick the honor, integrity and independence of the 
bar. It is, shall the newspapers invade the sanctity of courts of jus- 
tice and assail litigants, intimidate witnesses and dictate the verdicts 
of juries and the judgments of courts. The great journals of differ- 
ent cities are breaking down the barriers of the past, and assuming 
authority to comment on, criticize, condemn or approve of, proceed- 
ings pending in our courts of justice. They pour into every home 
their opinion of an undetermined case. They condemn the accused 



526 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

before the evidence is heard; name the amount the verdict oug^ht to 
be, the day the jury will decide; judges comprehending the direful 
results, resist, within the limits of the law, this outrageous interfer- 
ence. Yet it is to be feared that now and then there may be those 
elevated to the bench by favoritism, devoid of experience, tasting for 
the first time the sweets of popular applause, who caught by the 
breeze, will float with the current, try the case, and sentence prisoners 
to please the press." 

Judge Potter did not please the press. Faithfully and fearlessly he 
performed the solemn trust reposed in him, assigning the reasons 
therefore in an unanswerable opinion. He granted a stay, and vin- 
dicated the great principle which he represented. 

Mr. Dougherty described the incident in the following eloquent 
words: "Ay, when a judge, whose name deserves to be printed in 
letters of gold and kept bright forever, in despite of the storm that 
he knew would be heaped upon him. for good and weighty reasons, 
the case being one of first impressions, the first of the kind tried 
under the State Constitution, the first alleged briber ever indicted, 
'granted the stay, some of the journalists assailed his purity, ransacked 
his career, insinuating if they did not brand him as a bribetaker." 

Judge Potter wrote an elaborate opinion deciding the case which is 
reported at length in the reports of the decisions of the Supreme 
Court. 

"Subsequently the Court of Appeals 'calm as the lake that slumb- 
ers in the storm ' patiently heard elaborate argument, careftilly ex- 
amined cited authorities, studied printed briefs, deliberated fully, 
and without a dissenting voice, sustained the decision of Judge Potter 
in every detail and delivered an opinion which proved that an elective 
judiciary, to its lasting honor, will decide the law undismayed by the 
fiercest storm that ever bursts on an American court." 

Judge Potter has not only achieved greatness himself, but he has 
the felicity to see his sons also become prominent during his life. 

On October 23, 1845, Judge Potter married Catharine E. Boies, 
daughter of Judge Boies, and they have a family of three sons, namely: 
J. Sanford Potter, Commander William P. Potter and Henry Whit- 
beck Potter. J. Sanford Potter is one of the best known lawyers of 
Washington County and is the senior partner in the firm of Potter & 
Lillie of Whitehall. Commander William P. Potter has attained dis- 
tinction in the American Navy and is at present in charge of the Ord- 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 527 

nance Department of the Navy Yard at Philadelphia. He, in con- 
junction with Admiral Sampson and Captain Chadwick constituted 
the Court of Inquiry appointed by the United States Government to 
determine the cause of the destruction of the Battleship Maine. 
Henry Whitbeck Potter is a very successful electrical engineer and 
has charge of the Spanish-American business for the Westinghouse 
Company whom he now represents in Brazil. 

Since his retirement from the bar Judge Potter has been practising 
law and acting as referee, and always has important cases in his 
charge. Although he has about completed his 8oth year his intellec- 
tualit}' has not waned and he is today as, clear and forceful mentally 
as he was in his vigorous prime, and but for the age limitation im- 
posed by the Constitution of the State he might still adorn the bench 
to which for so man}' years he lent both strength and dignity. 

Judge Potter has long been interested in the iron mines of Wash- 
ington Countv. These mines have not been operated of late because 
of the low price of northwestern ores and cheaper transportation. 

Judge Potter's parents were Joel and Anne (Austin) Potter. The 
Potter family is an old American one ; its branches are man}' and its 
reputable men not a few, and the Hon. Joseph Potter has certainly 
added his share of luster to the name. 



Hon. Lonson Eraser was born in Hebron, Washington County, N. 
Y. , January 12, 1822, and is the son of Isaac M. and Mary (Munson) 
Eraser. His family is of Highland Scotch origin and his ancestors 
were not only among the earliest settlers in Washington County, but 
also figured conspicuously in the Revolutionary War as sterling up- 
holders of American liberty. 

Mr. Eraser's father was a farmer, and after leaving school he as- 
sisted his father in the duties of farming until the year of his majority, 
at which time he took up the study of medicine. The law, however, 
had always strongly attracted him and after continuing his medical 
studies for one year he abandoned that study and devoted himself 
henceforth to the study of the profession which for more than fifty 
years he has successfully practiced. He was admitted to the bar at 
the General Term of the Supreme Court, at Ballston, N. Y., in the 
winter of 1848, and at once began practising at West Hebron where 



528 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

from the first his services were widely sought. In 1854 he removed 
from West Hebron to Salem where he has since resided. His extreme 
care in gatherino- all the facts of a case; his ability in foreseeing dis- 
tant contingencies and his clear, forceful language before a jury, have 
won him wide success and brought his name to a position of high 
honor in the ranks of the veteran lawyers of Washington County. 

He served two terms as Surrogate, which office he held continuously 
from January i, 1872, to December 31, 1883. In 1884 he resumed his 
practice of the law at Salem where he has since remained. 

Judge Fraser has been a Republican since 1855. In 1856 he took 
the stump for Fremont and has since been active in the important 
political campaigns. 

In July, 1848, Judge Fraser married Elizabeth M., daughter of James 
Steele of West Hebron, and has one son, Hon. Frederick Fraser. 

Frederick Fraser was educated at the Washington Academy, Cam- 
bridge, N. Y., and studied law in the office of his father and was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1887. He has held the office of Justice of the 
Peace for one term, has been Supervisor of the town of Salem for 
three terms, and in 1894 was elected a member of the New York State 
Constitutional Convention. He is now successfully practicing law 
with his father at Salem, and is regarded as one of the ablest lawyers 
of the county. 



Oscar F. Davis, one of the oldest, best known and most highly 
respected members of the Washington County bar, was born at Brat- 
tleboro, Vt., October 16, 1820. When he was in his third year his 
parents moved to Granville, N. Y., and there he received his early 
education at the Granville Academy, and afterward took up the study 
of law in the office of John H. Boyd of Whitehall, N. Y. He com- 
pleted his legal studies with the late Judge James Gibson of Salem, 
and was admitted to the bar in the spring of 1850. In the same year 
he settled permanently at Whitehall and began the practice of his 
profession, which he has continued throughout half a century, achiev- 
ing a high reputation, not only as an advocate and counsellor, but 
also as a man of honor and integrity. 

In addition to his law business, Mr. Davis was for about ten years 
connected with the great lumber trade of Whitehall. He has always 
taken an intelligent and active interest in public affairs, and was a 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 529 

member of the Board of Education for a period of twenty years, dur- 
ing fully half of which time he was President of the Board. He 
also held a seat on the Board of Village Trustees for a number of 
years and was President of the village several terms. 

In 1854 Oscar F. Davis married Charlotte Towne Rowe, of the 
village of Granville, N. Y. Their children are Rufus Rowe Davis, 
Charlotte T. and Pauline B. 

Rufus Rowe Davis is a lawyer and is associated with his father. 

Charlotte T. married Capt. O. A. Dennis, a prominent lawyer of 
Whitehall, and Pauline B. married Walter N. Weeks. 

Oscar F. Davis is a son of Jonathan and Elizabeth (Preston) Davis. 
His great uncle, Capt. Isaac Davis, was the first man killed in the 
War of the Revolution at Concord, Mass. 

Jonathan Davis was a native of Massachusetts, but removed to Ver- 
mont shortly after his marriage. He subsequently settled in Gran- 
ville, as has been stated, where he remained until his death in April, 
1869. 

His wife, Elizabeth Preston, was a native of Massachusetts and was 
born in 1793. She died in 1845 at the age of fifty-two. 



John Gilroy was born in Richfield Springs, N. Y., March 22, 1864, 
and received his education at the public schools of his native place 
and the Cooperstdwn Academy. He began the study of law with 
Thomas Hagerty of Richfield Springs, and completed his legal studies 
in the office of Jordan E. Seeley at Granville. He was admitted to 
the bar on September 8, 1892 and immediately began the active prac- 
tice of his profession as a partner with Mr. Seeley. the firm name be- 
ing Seeley & Gilroy. In 1896 this firm dissolved and Mr. Gilroy at 
once opened an office for himself. He is an able advocate and has 
already achieved a high reputation, not only as a legal advisor, but 
has also taken high rank as a corporation counsel and lawyer. He is 
at present corporation counsel for the village of Granville and also for 
the Farmers' National Bank, besides being Village Clerk. He was a 
Justice of the Peace for eight consecutive years. 

In politics Mr. Gilroy is a Democrat and his voice and counsel are 
invariably sought by the party leaders. In 1898 he was nominated 

[66J 



530 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

by the Democrats for Member of Assembly and made a creditable 
run against Hon. Charles R. Paris, of Sandy Hill, N. Y., but it must 
be remembered that Washington County is overwhelmingly Repub- 
lican. Again in 1895 he was nominated on the Deinocratic ticket for 
Supervisor of the town of Granville, but was defeated for the reason 
just named. In both of these campaigns, however, he ran 500 votes 
ahead of his ticket. He was for two years Chairman of the Demo- 
cratic County Committee and was its treasurer for several years, and 
has been delegate to every Democratic County Convention since 
reaching his majority, and two Democratic State Conventions. 

Mr. Gilroy is a member of the Sons of Veterans and of the Knights 
of Columbus, and has served two years as Grand Knight. 

His parents were John and Catharine (Lawler) Gilroy, both natives 
of Longford, Ireland. John Gilroy, Sr. , was a veteran of the civil 
war, serving in the Second Heavy Artillery, which experienced much 
severe fighting. 

On May 8, 1900, Mr. Gilroy married Elizabeth Lyon, daughter of 
William Lyon, of Middle Granville, N. Y. 

Mr. Gilroy is one of the ablest and most popular lawyers in Wash- 
ington County. His fine abilities have already placed him in the 
front rank of the bar of Northern New York, and his affibility wins 
him friends every day, and above all he has established a reputation 
for unswerving integrit)^, which has gained for him the highest degree 
of public confidence. 



Hon. Charles R. Paris was born at Sandy Hill, N. Y., August 9, 
185 1, and was educated in the schools of his native place. He studied 
law in the office of his father,- the late U. G. Paris, who was one of 
the ablest and most successful lawyers of his day in this state. 
Charles R. Paris was admitted to the bar in 1880, and since that date 
has been a prominent factor in the legal and political life of Washing- 
ton County. Indeed, before his admission, he was active in public 
affairs. In 1878 he was elected Supervisor for the Town of Kingsbury 
and held the office for three years, 1878- 1879- 1880, and during the 
last year he was chairman of the Board. From that time up to 1894 
he devoted himself entirely to the practice of his profession and at- 
tained a distinction which was destined later on to brinaf him the hioh- 






fCu^iyu-^ 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 531 

est legal honor in the gift of the county. During the years 1894 and 
1895 he was President of the Village of Sandy Hill and his popularity 
in his native place was strikingly illustrated by the fact that not a 
single vote was cast against him when he was a candidate. 

Always a Republican, ready and able to aid his party, his services 
and ability were recognized, when in 1897 he was elected to the State 
Legislature and at the expiration of his first term was re-elected. 
During both terms he was active in the House and served on several 
important committees. During 1897 he served on the Committees on 
Insurance, Trades and Manufactures and Military Affairs; and during 
1898 on the Committees on Codes, Taxation, Retrenchment, Labor 
and Industries. 

In the summer of 1899 Hon. Charles R. Paris was nominated by the 
Republican Convention for County Judge, and the contest which fol- 
lowed gave an emphatic illustration of his great populai it}^ and the 
public confidence reposed in him. Opposed by a strong Republican 
who was endorsed by the Democrats, Judge Paris carried the County 
by a majority of 11 74 votes, his own town of Kingsbur}^ which is 
about 400 Republican, giving him a majority of 749. 

Successful as a lawyer, as a politician, and as a business man, he is 
eminently qualified for the bench, and his large and varied experience 
is enriched by a sterling integrity which is the great source of his 
popularity. 

Judge Paris is vitall}^ interested in the business life of Sandy Hill. 
He is President of the People's National Bank, a stockholder in the 
Standard Wall Paper Company, a stockholder in the Dunn Water 
Supply Company, which constructed and owns the water works at 
Corinth, Saratoga County; and he is counsel for all these concerns. 
He was a stockholder and treasurer of the W^asliington County Park 
Association, and was for two years treasurer of its successor, the 
Washington County Agricultural Society. 

In 1879 Judge Paris married Alma Biggart, and they have a family 
of three children, namely, Urias G. Paris 2d, Cordelia A. Paris and 
Cola K. Paris. His parents were Urias G. and Cordelia (Rogers) 
Paris. 

For family genealogy see biography of Hon. L"^. G. Paris. 



532 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Grenville Mellen Ingalsbe was born in the southern part of the 
Town of Hartford, N. Y., July 26, 1846, the only child of Milo In- 
o^alsbe and Laura C. Ingalsbe, nee Chapin. He was under the in- 
struction of his father until he was fourteen years of age. During 
the next four winters he attended the district school and one term of 
Miss Sarah Slocum's select school. In 1864-65 he spent a year at the 
Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, entering Union College in 1866 in 
the class of 1868. He remained in college only one year. His record 
as a student was a brilliant one. He was the first scholar in every 
class room, and in college his record was such that his Bachelor's De- 
gree was conferred upon him in 1870, and three years later, the Degree 
of Master of Arts. 

In 1867 he assumed charge of the Argyle Academy at Argyle, N. 
Y., remaining its principal three years. In increase of students 
and in scholarly attainments these years were the most honorable in 
its long history. Here he commenced the formation of a library 
which has become one of the most valuable in the vicinity. He was 
a student with his students, at the same time doing much valuable 
literary work. In the summer of 1870 he resigned his position at Ar- 
gyle, leaving the educational field with great reluctance. 

He immediately commenced the study of law in the office of Hughes 
& Northup at Sandy Hill. After a year of unremitting application 
his desire for more school life caused him to abandon his clerkship, 
and enter the Harvard Law School. Here he accomplished the work 
of the two years course in one year, graduating with honors, as Bachelor 
of Law, in the class of 1872. Besides his law work he pursued the study 
of history under Dr. Eliot, botany under Dr. Gray, natural science 
under Louis Agassiz, and literature, German and other branches under 
equally illustrious masters. Upon his graduation he entered Hughes 
& Northup's office as managing clerk. This was during the political 
campaign of 1872. and he flung aside the most flattering offers of 
political preferment to espouse the cause of his i)ersonal friend, Hor- 
ace Greeley. From this time, while identified generally with the 
Republican party, he has not been a partisan to the extent of placing 
party above country, and he has not hesitated to antagonize the party 
at all times when he has considered its position inimical to the inter- 
ests of the common people, opposed to an honest and economical ad- 
ministration of public affairs, or subversive of sacred national tradi- 
tions. In 1874 he was admitted to the bar, opening an office in Sandy 





x>|. c*S-v_^,/ej„X<i...-^x^ 



^ 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 533 

Hill in 1875. He has since been actively engaged in his profession, 
building up a large and lucrative practice, and having in charge the 
legal work of a great number of the most important private and cor- 
porate interests of Northern New York. 

On September 20, 1876, he was married to Franc E. Groesbeck at 
"Pine Avenue," the home of her step-father, Mr. Amasa Howland 
of Sandy Hill. Miss Groesbeck was born October 19, 1856; was the 
daughter of Nathaniel Barnett Groesbeck and Lydia A. Groesbeck, 
nee Kingsley, and on both sides was descended from revolutionary 
ancestry. She is a graduate of Temple Grove Seminary, and was a 
teacher in the Sandy Hill Union School. They have one child Gren- 
ville Howland, born November 8, 1878. He prepared for college at 
the Glens Falls Academy and Phillips Exeter, and is now in Harvard 
College. 

For four years, 1874-8, Mr. Ingalsbe was the Secretary of the Wash- 
ington County Agricultural Society, showing the highest order of ex- 
ecutive ability. Its premium list and field of operations were more 
than doubled; great improvements were made upon its grounds; 
Memorial Hall was built; its office methods simplified, and its indebt- 
edness reduced about four thousand dollars. Upon his retirement, 
the appreciation of the Association was shown, by his election as a 
life Counselor of the Society. 

In 1877 he was appointed a Justice of the Peace and was twice 
elected, retiring after nearly nine years service, because the office in- 
terfered with his professional work. For three years, 1885-8, he was 
the Supervisor of his town; in 1887-8, being the Chairman of the 
Board. At the expiration of his third term he declined a second 
unanimous re-election. He was elected Clerk of the Village of Sandy 
Hill in 1875. By successive appointments he held the office, with the 
exception of one year, until March, 1894, when he resigned, that he 
might devote his energies exclusively to his profession; to his various 
business interests, including the management of the farm homestead 
for which, and farm life, he holds a great affection, and to study 
along the lines which, amid the duties of an exacting profession, have 
continued to have such attractions for him, that he has preserved the 
mental poise of a student, and many of the habits of the scholastic 
recluse. 

After 1872, while taking an active part in local politics, he stead- 
fastly refused to allow his name to be used as a candidate for district 



534 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

or county offices, preferring the emoluments and honors of his pro- 
fession. In 1895, however, a few hours before the opening of the 
Republican County Convention, he consented to the presentation of 
his name for Surrogate. He was nominated and elected. Of his 
record as Surrogate, a paper of hostile politics said editorially: "Po- 
litical friend and foe alike concede that Mr. Ingalsbe has made a 
model official." Upon his induction into office he instituted six en- 
tirely new series of record books; revolutionized a seventh series, 
and adopted improved systems for the filing of papers. During his 
term he prepared over one hundred different forms of blanks, intro- 
duced the card index, systematized the work of the office, increased 
its efficiency, and greatly elevated the standards of the Court. Early 
in 1901, a year prior to the expiration of his term, though keenly ap- 
preciative of the general commendation bestowed upon his official 
career, he declined becoming a candidate for re-election. 

Mr. Ingalsbe's identification with learned societies has been ex- 
tended. He is an active member of the American Academy of Po- 
litical and Social Science, the National Bi-metalist Association, the 
American Anti-Imperialist League, the Harvard Law School Alumni 
Association, the Union College Alumni Association of Northeastern 
New York, the New York State Bar Association, the American His- 
torical Association, the American Bar Association and many other 
kindred organizations. For many years he has been on the Executive 
Committee of the Union College Alumni, and of the State Bar Asso- 
ciation, of which for three years, he was Chairman. He is now the 
President of the Alumni Association, and a member of the Local 
Council of the American Bar Association. He was one of the Incor- 
porators, and is a Director of the State Historical Association. 

His business interests for many years have been large and are con- 
stantly being extended. Until absorbed by larger corporations, he 
was a director and Secretary of the Sandy Hill Electric Light and 
Power Company, and the Sandy Hill Power Company. He has been 
for many years a Director and Secretary of the Spring Brook Water 
Company, and a Director of the Glens Falls, Sandy Hill & Fort Ed- 
ward Street Railroad Company. He has been prominent in the organ- 
ization of nearly every one of the business corporations at Sandy 
Hill, as stockholder or counsel, including the latest, the American 
Wall Paper Company. He is a Trustee of the Glens Falls Academy. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. ' 535 

In 1884 he was elected a Director and Counsel for the National Bank 
of Sandy Hill, positions which he still holds, and in 1899 he was pro- 
moted to the vice-presidenc}' of the bank. 



Rodney Van Wormer, Clerk of Washington County 1889- 1900, was 
born in the hamlet of West Fort Ann, Washington County, N. Y., on 
the 9th day of December, 1850, and is a son of Henry F. and Jane M. 
(Fuller) Van Wormer. On his paternal side he is a great grandson 
of Jacob Van Wormer, who served with distinction as Second Lieu- 
tenant in Captain De Garmo's Company, 14th Albany County Regi- 
ment, Hoosick and Schaghticoke District in the War of the Revolu-. 
tion. [For family history see "Genealogy of the Van Wormer 
Family," p. 179, Part II.] 

Rodney Van Wormer grew to manhood in his native town 
and received his education in the common and select schools of the 
neighborhood. He was a prominent and active member of the Union 
Debating Society, which (during the winter inonths) met weekl}' in 
the old red school house at the forks of the road about one-half mile 
northerly from the West Fort Ann post-office, and near the residence 
of the late Benjamin C. Copeland. No doubt the connection with 
the debating society had very much to do with his entering the law 
office of Counselor Silas P. Pike, of Fort Ann, N. Y. , as a law stu- 
dent, which he did on the 9th day of December, 1878, following the 
repeated advice of an old friend and member of the society. Mr. 
Van Wormer was admitted to the bar in September, 1882, and from 
that date to January i, 1889, he was actively and successfully engaged 
in the practice of his chosen profession at Fort Ann, N. Y. He was 
the junior member of the law firm of Pike & Van Wormer until 
September, 1883, when Mr. Pike died. 

In politics Mr. Van Wormer has always been a staunch and active 
Republican, and in the fall of 1888 he was nominated and elected 
Clerk of Washington County and took up his residence in Argyla, 
N. Y., entering upon the duties of his office January i, 1889. He 
proved to be a very popular and efficient county official and was thrice 
re-nominated by acclamation and re-elected in the years 1891, 1894 
and 1897, and will close his fourth and last term of office as County 
Clerk with the present century, when he will resume the practice of 



536 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

law. During- his incumbency in office he has made many improve- 
ments in the system of keeping the records of the office, which will 
prove of value to future generations. 

In 187 1 Mr. Van Wormer was united in marriage to Cornelia L., 
daughter of Samuel and Emma Lamb, of Fort Ann, N. Y. To their 
union has been born a daughter. Miss Letta, who graduated from the 
Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, class of 1894, and was deputy 
County Clerk, 1898- 1900. 

Mr. Van Wormer is a member of the New York State Historical 
Association and a ^id degree Mason. He has crossed the sands of 
the desert with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and is a member of 
the following masonic bodies: 

Mount Hope Lodge, No. 260, F. & A. M., Fort Ann, N. Y. ; Fort 
Edward Chapter, No'. 171, R. A. M. ; Cryptic Council, No. 37, R 
& S. M., Saratoga Springs, N. Y. ; Washington Commandery, No. ^^ 
K. T., Saratoga Springs, N. Y. ; Delta Lodge of Perfection, A. A. S 
Rite, 4 ° — 14 ° , Troy, N. Y. ; Delta Council Princes Jerusalem 
15 ° and 16 ° , Troy, N. Y. ; Delta Chapter Rose Croix, 17 ° and 18 ° 
Troy, N. Y. ; Albany Sovereign Consistory, S. P. R. S., 19 ° — 32 ° 
Albany, N. Y. ; Oriental Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., Troy, N. Y. 



Hon. Thomas A. Lillie, the subject of this sketch, although only in 
the prime of his years, has attained areputationasa jurist which places 
him in the front rank of the legal profession of New York State. He 
was born in the town of Putnam, Washington County, N. Y., in 1852, 
and received his preliminary education at the academy in his native 
town. He then took a course in the Albany Normal College at Al- 
bany, N. Y., from which he was graduated in the class of 187 1, after 
which he completed his literary education at Union College from 
which, after an unusually creditable course, he was graduated in 1875. 
While pursuing his educational career he also did considerable teach- 
ing and was principal of the Cedar Grove Academy at Montclair, N. 
J., for two years. His tastes and inclinations were toward law and 
for this profession his abilities peculiarly fitted him. He read law in 
the office of Judge Harris at Albany and was admitted to the bar in 
1875. He then began the practice of his profession at Whitehall and 
rapidly came to the front as one of the leading lawyers of the county. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 537 

Judge Lillie is a Republican in politics and his voice and vie.ws al- 
ways command the attention and respect of his party. He was Su- 
pervisor of the Town of Whitehall for three years and was Chairman 
of the Board during the last year. In 1887 he was nominated for 
County Judge by the Republican party and was elected for a term of 
six years by a splendid majority. At the expiration of his term he 
was re-elected for a second term of six years which expired December 
31, 1899. He was an exceptionally able judge and was highly popu- 
lar on the bench because he combined an exceedingly fine sense of 
justice with a profound knowledge of the law. His mind is naturally 
judicial, he is deliberate and concise in his reasoning and logical in 
his conclusions. His ability on the bench is well indicated by the 
fact that he held court in ten different counties in New York State 
including Westchester, Albany and Rensselaer, during his regime as 
Judge of Washington County. 

As a lawyer he has also been highly successful, although half of his 
time since his admission to the bar has been spent on the bench. He 
has conducted many important cases as a trial lawyer, including six 
murder cases, three of which were from the State of Vermont. 

In 1886 the partnership of Potter & Lillie was formed, including 
Judge Lillie and Mr. J. S. Potter, son of Hon. Joseph Potter, late of 
the New York State Court of Appeals. 

In 1S79 Judge Lillie married Florence L. Broughton and they have 
four children, viz: Louise J., Alice, Annie and Thomas A. Lillie, Jr. 

Judge Lillie's father, Thomas Lillie, was also a native of Putnam, 
Washington County, N. Y., and his grandfather, also Thomas Lillie, 
was a native of Edinburgh, Scotland. He was the progenitor of the 
Lillie faniily in this country and was a graduate of Edinburgh Uni- 
versity and came to America about 1820 and settled at Putnam, N. 
Y., and was a physician and farmer. The remote ancestors of the 
family were French Huguenots, who left that country and went to 
Scotland in the sixteenth centi;rv. 



Joseph B. McCormick is a son of James and Katherine (Keating) 
McCormick, and was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washington 
County, N. Y., March 3, 1863. He read law with the late Judge 

[67J 



538 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 



Royal C. Betts of Granville, and was admitted to the Washington 
County bar May 4, 1888, and since then has been engaged in the active 
practice of his profession in the courts of his native county, and also 
in all the courts of the State of Vermont. In January, 1894, he was 
admitted to practice in the United States court. 



Charles O. Prati' was born in the town of White Creek, Washing- 
ton County, November 15, 1863. He attended the district school and 
was an earnest student evincing the spirit of application and indicating 
the ability which has since made him one of the brightest legal minds 
in northern New York. 

He completed his literary studies in the Troy Conference Academy 
at Poultney. Vermont, and Fort Edward Collegiate Institute. He 
then read law for two years in the office of Westfall & Whitcomb at 
Cambridge, N. Y., after which he entered the Albany Law School 
and was elected President of his class. He was admitted to the bar 
February 8, 1889, and immediately began the practice of his profes- 
sion with John Warren at Granville, N. Y. After a brief residence 
in Granville he became a partner with Willis E. Heaton, of Hoosick 
Falls, N. Y., who is a prominent attorney and politician of that 
place. This partnership was dissolved in 1891 and Mr. Pratt opened 
an office in the Crocker building. Main street, Cambridge. On No- 
vember 12 of that year he was appointed Justice of the Peace to fill 
the vacancy caused by the death of R. King Crocker and held this 
office until December 28, 1898, when he resigned. From February 
12, 1893, to February 12, 1894, he was managing clerk in the office of 
Hon. D. M. Westfall. In 1892 he was elected Police Justice for the 
Village of Cambridge and held this office concurrently wi,th that of 
Justice of the Peace until December 28, 1898, when he resigned both 
offices to accept the nomination for District Attorney. He was unani- 
mously nominated March 16, 1898, at the Republican Convention 
held in Salem. N. Y., for the office of District Attorney, and was 
elected by a large majority. 

Mr. Pratt's record before the courts as District Attorney would be 
very flattering to any man and therefore particularly so to a man on 
the youthful side of his prime. He is well versed in the law and is 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 539 

eminently able as a public prosecutor, but withal is such an ardent 
lover of justice that he makes an ideal prosecuting" attorney. His 
present office is in the Cambridge building on Broad Street where he 
has a large and well selected library to which he is constantly adding. 

Mr. Pratt is an enthusiastic agriculturist, and to the gratification of 
his taste for this pursuit he devotes his spare time. 

On June 26, 1889, Mr. Pratt married Lilla, R. Clark daughter of 
Harry G. and Florence (Sherman) Clark. They have three children, 
viz: Flora M , Charlotte and Daniel Harry. Mr. Pratt's parents 
were Daniel H. and Charlotte A. (Conant) Pratt. Daniel H. Pratt 
was an influential man in the Town of White Creek where he held 
several public offices. Among them that of Justice of the Peace for a 
term of sixteen years. His grandfather, also Daniel H. Pratt, when 
a boy of fourteen years, carried an important dispatch from General' 
Stark at Bennington to one of his outposts at Hoosick Corners, a dis- 
tance of ten miles, which fact is on record at Washington, D. C. 
Charles O. Pratt's father was a farmer, carpenter and builder and 
aided in the construction of nearly all the lattice bridges over the 
many creeks in and around the old town of Cambridge and the town 
of Hoosick. Mr. Pratt's maternal grandfather, John Conant, was a 
soldier in the war of 1812. 

Charles O. Pratt is a member of Cambridge Valley Lodge No 491, 
F. & A. M. 



Edgar Hull was born in Berne, Albany County, Januarj' 16, 1840. 
He began business as a "printer's devil" in the office of the Berkshire 
Courier in Great Barrington, Mass. He was ediicated in the Great Bar- 
rington Academy, and at the Jonesville (N. Y.) Academy. He com- 
menced the study of law in the office of Clement C. Hill at Ballston 
Spa, N. Y., in 1859, and located in Fort Edward in the fall of i860, 
earning a livlihood by practice in the Justice Court until 1864 when 
he was admitted to the bar as attorney and counselor. 

In politics he was an ardent admirer of Stephen A. Douglass, and 
although not old enough to vote, yet made many speeches at the pub- 
lic meetings of the Douglass Democracy, during the campaign of i860. 
Subsequently he advocated the election of General Grant as President, 
and has acted with the Republican party ever since. During the 
years 1875, ^^7^ ^nd 1877 he was Supervisor of the town of Fort Ed- 



540 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ward. In 18S3 the Republican party nominated him for District At- 
torney; he was duly elected and discharged the duties of the office 
for fifteen years from 1884 to 1898 inclusive. At the expiration of 
his term the bar of Washington County at a Term of Court held at 
Sandy Hill, N. Y., presented him with a diamond pin and adopted 
resolutions highly commendatory of his official career. In 1899 he 
ran as an Independent candidate for County Judge, polling a remark- 
ably large vote, and although carrying six of the seventeen towns of 
the county was defeated by a small majority. He is a member of the 
Masonic and Royal Arcanum societies. 

He married Amelia E. Possons and they have had three children, 
namely: Frank, Nellie and Jennie. His, parents were Erastus Hull 
and Eliza (Race) Hull, and he is a descendant of the Hulls who fig- 
ured so prominently on land and sea in the war of 18 12. 



Hon. Daniel M. Westfall, one of the most prominent members of 
the bar of Washington County, was born at Lewisburgh, near Decker- 
town, in the township of Wantage, Sussex County, N. J., December 
II, 1830. His father was a farmer and he grew up amid rural sur- 
roundings and received his early education at the Lewisburgh District 
School and Deckertown Academy. At the early age of sixteen years 
he began teaching school in his native district and between teaching 
and attending the Deckertown Academy, he passed the time until the 
spring of 1852, when he entered Union College, in the third term as a 
sophomore. He made a specialty of the classical course and read 
Blackstone and Kent while in college. In the spring of 1854 he ac- 
cepted a position as teacher in the Washington Academy at Cam- 
bridge, N. Y., of which John. H. Burtis was at that time principal. In 
July, 1854, he was graduated from Union College, taking the degree 
of A. B., and was admitted to the Society of Phi Beta Kappa, because 
of his high standing. In the fall of the same year he began to read 
law in the office of Judge Howe, at the same time continuing to teach 
three hours a day in the Washington Academy of which he was prin- 
cipal for the spring term of 1855. 

He was admitted to the bar in January, 1856, and during a part of 
that year taught the languages and higher mathematics in the Acad- 



i 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 541 

emy at Greenwich, N. Y., and at the same time reading law in Judge 
Ingall's office. 

In August, 1856, Hon. D. M. Westfall entered into partnership with 
Judge Howe, of Cambridge, N. Y., who died in August, 1857. He 
was one of the first incorporators of the Woodland Cemetery Associa- 
tion in 1856 and acted as secretary of the preliminary meeting of that 
organization, prepared its charter and title papers and was one of its 
Trustees and Secretary of its Board until he resigned, after many 
years of service. He was also, for a number of years, and until he 
resigned, one of the Trustees and Secretary of the Board of Trustees 
of the Cambridge Washington iVcademy. 

Hon. D. M. Westfall had not been practicing law many years before 
he assumed his legitimate position as a leading member of the bar of 
Washington County, and from 1866 to 1873 he held the office of special 
Surrogate. 

In politics Hon. D. M. Westfall has always been an ardent Repub- 
lican whose voice and views are valued in the councils of his party. 

He represented his district in the State Assembly in 1884 and again 
in 1886. While in the Legislature he did a large part of the work of 
the Judiciar}' Committee and in 1886 was the first Chairman of the 
First Revision Committee. His associates on that committee were 
Baker, Kruse, Sheehan and Cantor. During the years 1885 and 1886 
Hon. D. M. Westfall was one of the Examining Committee of the 
Supreme Court, General Term, Third Department, and examined 
and certified Mrs. Stoneman, the first woman admitted to the legal 
profession in the State of New York. She was admitted under an 
amendment of the Code enacted after she was examined (Laws 
1886, Chap. 425.) 

During his professional practice Hon. D. M. Westfall has been the 
means of settling some important questions of law, evidence and 
practice; as notable instances we refer to the following cases: People 
vs. Shaw, 63 N. Y. ^6; Wilkinson vs. First National Fire Insurance 
Company of Worcester, 72 N. Y. 499; Baucus vs. Barr, 45 Hun., 582, 
affirmed, 107 N. Y. 624; Hoag vs. Town of Greenwich, 133 N. Y. 152. 

Hon. D. M. Westfall besides bestowing attention upon all legal 
matters entrusted to him also takes a lively interest in all public 
questions and especially in legal legislation and has been trustee of 
the Cambridge Valley National Bank since 1883. 

On February 8, i860, Hon. D. M. Westfall married Susan M., 



542 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

daughter of Judge Luther J. Howe. Their children are Daniel M. 
Jr., and Bertha Grace. 

Daniel Westfall, Jr., is a graduate of Union College and an attorney 
at law. 

Hon. D. j\I. Westfall traces his ancestry upon his mother's side 
from Captain Westfall of the Continental Army and also from Peter 
Decker, the founder of Deckertown, whose wife was a daughter of 
Captain Westfall. His father was also a descendant of the same 
Westfall familv. 



Eliot Bliven Norton, the subject of this sketch, one of the best 
known and most prominent lawyers of Washington County, was born 
in Cambridge, Washington County, N. Y., in the year 1864. He at- 
tended the Putnam Institute and the Cambridge Washington Academy 
in Cambridge, after which he entered the State Normal School at 
Albany to fit himself for teaching. Soon after graduating from the 
Normal School he secured a position as teacher in the Institute for 
the Blind in New York City. Later on he became principal of the 
school at Eagle Mills, N. Y., which position he finally resigned to be- 
come chief accountant and cashier for the Jerome B. Rice Seed Com- 
pany at Cambridge. 

During his seven years service with the above named company, he 
resolved to become a follower of Blackstone and Kent, and in Sep- 
tember, 1894, he took up the study of Law in the office of Hon. D. M. 
Westfall where he remained two years. He then took a course in the 
Albany Law School, from which he was graduated in June, 1897, and 
was duly admitted to the bar in the following July, since which time 
he has been actively engaged in the practice of his profession at Cam- 
bridge. His office is located in the B. P. Crocker building on Main 
street. 

In 1883 Mr. Norton married Helen McFadden of Cambridge, and 
they have one son, Harold M. Norton. 

Mr. Norton's father, Warren Norton, was a native of East Salem, 
N. Y. His great grandfather, .William Norton, and great great 
grandfather, George Norton, were both Revolutionary soldiers. The 
latter received a wound at the Battle of Trenton from which he died 
in a few days. 

Mrs. Norton's great grandfather, Micah Blackwell, was a private in 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 543 

Capt. Ward Swift's Second Sandwich Company and marched on the 
alarm of April 19, 1775. He was also Quarter-Master in Major Dim- 
ock's Regiment, and also in Col. John Cushing's Regiment at New- 
port, R. I. 

The histor}^ of the Norton family is contemporaneous with almost 
the entire history of America, as the original settlers of this name 
were among the earliest emigrants to this country. 



Randolph Rogers first saw the light of day at Sandy Hill, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., February 24, 1841, which village by the river 
has been his home ever since. His father, Charles Rogers, was a 
leading public man and politician of the Clinton-Seward Whig party 
of Washington County, having served with distinction two terms in 
the Legislature of New York State, and once having been called to 
the Congress of the nation at Washington. His mother was the 
daughter of Russell Clark, a prominent physician and surgeon of 
Northern New York in the early days of the country, when a doctor 
was not located at your very door. 

His parents took a deep interest in young Randolph's early train- 
ing. His first instructor was Jesse K. Sanborn, who taught him all 
the letters of the alphabet when but five years old. He attended the 
district school a while, and in due time was transferred to the "Mathe- 
matical and Classical School." presided over by William McLaren, a 
Scotchman of much learning and ability in his chosen profession. 
Under his inspiration he mastered the Latin of Caesar^ read fluently 
Virgil and the odes of Horace, and became proficient in algebra and 
the science of geometry. 

While attending this school, Randolph was instrumental in organ- 
izing the Young Men'' s Literaiy Association of Sandy Hill, known as 
the " Y. M. L. A.," and was made its first president. This was a de- 
bating Club composed of thirty-five of the best and most talented 
young men of the village. Its first meeting was held December 3, 
1858, and it convened weekly in the hall over the law office of Henry 
B. Northup, which rang with the eloquence of youthful oratory. 

During this period the War Cry sounded throughout the land, and 
Randolph was uneasy. He could no longer remain quiet in front of 
a school desk, and soon was on his way to Washington as a member 



544 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of the 22d Regiment N. Y. S. Infantry Volunteers. This regiment 
was one of the number that formed the celebrated "Iron Brigade," 
and fought well and nobly at Seco7id Bull Run, Sotit/i Mouyitain, 
Antietam and Frcdricksburgh. 

At the expiration of their term of enlistment, the soldiers of the 
"old 22d," who had not made a sacrifice of their lives in their 
country's cause, returned to their homes in New York State, and 
Randolph enjoyed a season of rest and recreation from the bloody 
scenes of the battle field. He soon recuperated enough to enroll him- 
self as a student of the Fort Edzvard Collegiate Institnte, and completed 
his education there under the master hand of Rev. Joseph E. King. 
From the Institute, he entered the law office of Hughes and Northup 
at Sandy Hill, and was admitted to practice as an attorney and coun- 
selor at law at a General Term of the Supreme Court held in Schen- 
ectady in May, 1865. 

An appointment in the service of "Uncle Sam" awaiting him, 
Randolph laid aside the Diploma calling him to the bar as a full- 
fledged lawyer, and during the month of May, 1865, removed to New 
York City and entered upon the discharge of his duties as "Special 
Aid to the Revenue," in the office of Hon. Abram^ Wakeman, Sur- 
veyor of the Port of New York. The knowledge he acquired of city 
life and customs while in New York has been the best school to him 
he ever attended and rightly perfected the education he had previously 
obtained. 

At the close of President Johnson's administration. Surveyor Wake- 
man resigning his office under the government, Mr. Rogers followed 
his chief into retirement and reti;rned to his home in Sandy Hill. 
Never idle, we now find him at a desk in the office of his brother-in- 
law, Hon. U. G. Paris, reading up in old law books, and doing some 
good law work himself. We also see him with hoe and spade in 
hand, beautifying his father's grounds and sowing choice seeds in the 
garden spot which spring up under his careful cultivation to afford 
luxuries for the family table, and the bright beds of flowers, nurtured 
with his best care, to shed luster and perfume far around. For more 
work to come, he opens a law office in his native village, and is found 
early and late at his desk, and always busy. 

In the fall of 1872 Charles Rogers cast his vote for Horace Greeley 
for President, and Randolph performed the same, as he believed, 
true and meritorious act. This son of a noble father has ever since 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 545 

remained a firm believer in the tenets of Democracy, and during Gen. 
Winfield Scott Hancock's canvass for the Presidency did some ef- 
fective speaking on the stump. In the spring of 1885 he was elected 
Justice of the Peace by a good sized majority in the town of Kingsbury, 
which usually sends the Republican ticket half a thousand ahead. 
Leniency and moral suasion characterized his discharge of the duties 
of this oiifice. The tramp element of the neighborhood knew him as 
their best friend and adviser, and willingly skipped his town for the 
more fertile fields beyond. 

Mr. Rogers has a reputation, where he is known, as a public speaker 
and poet. At the dedication of the Soldiers' Monument at Sandy 
Hill, June 30, 1887, and at the first Reunion of the 22d Regiment 
Veteran Association, of which he is a member, held at Glens Falls, the 
following year, where were assembled ten thousand citizens and soldiers^ 
he was given first place on the speakers programme and carried off 
the honors on both occasions. 

He has held the office of President of the Veteran Association of 
the Regiment, to which he belongs, for three successive terms, and 
always at its Annual Reunion greeted his comrades with an address 
of welcome, flowing over with words of mirth and cheer, and delivered 
a poem full of war incidents, of story and song. He has written over 
one hundred short poems, songs and melodies, some of which have been 
published in the village papers. A few of his campaign songs were 
printed by the Democratic press and justly admired, especially his 
" Song of Victory." composed to the tune of " Marching Along." 

Mr. Rogers was a favorite with the young ladies of Sandy Hill, but 
his heart was never touched until he met Miss Jessie Boone Harris, 
to whom he was married December 16, 1886, the Rev. Arthur B. 
Moorehouse of Zion Church performing the ceremony. Her father 
was the son of Moses Harris, who rendered distinguished military 
service for the country under General Schuyler during the early days 
of the Revolutionary War. Her mother, whose maiden name was 
Arilda Ann Boone, was a descendant of Daniel Boone, the renowned 
pioneer and hunter of America. One daughter has been born to 
them, named Ethel, who celebrated her thirteenth birthday Novem- 
ber 5, 1900. 

Mr. Rogers has a law office and sanctum at his residence on Clark 
street, where he spends many a quiet hour in study and reflection. 

[68J 



546 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

His time is principally occupied in overseeing the four farms owned 
by him in Washington and Saratoga Counties, which he has made 
productive and a sourse of income to him. 

He was a member of the Sons of Temperance when a large and 
flourishing division was located at Sandy Hill. He is a Veteran of 
William M. Collin Post, No. 587, G. A. R., and has a seat in the Pres- 
byterian Church of his native village, from which he listens to the 
"stated preaching of the gospel" by his pastor, the Rev. Charles D. 
Kellogg. 

Randolph Rogers was born under a hicky star, Pisces is his sign, and 
his ruling planet is Mars, and his favorite gem the Amethyst, the 
symbol of temperance and chastity; which assure him riches and long 
life, and a name and reputation that can never be assailed. 



Capt. Otis Alonzo Dennis was born in Norwich, Conn., but was 
brought to Whitehall by his parents when quite young. He received 
a liberal education in the public schools of this village and having 
decided to enter the legal profession he read law in the office of 
Tanner & Potter from 1877 until his admission to the bar September 
10, 1880. For the next nine years he w^as actively engaged in the 
practice of his profession. 

In 1889 he was appointed by the Court as consultation clerk and 
Librarian of the Court of Appeals, Second Division, and continued in 
that position until the Court finished its labors in 1892 when he 
resumed the practice of his profession in Whitehall and has advanced 
to a prominent place in the front rank of the bar of Washington 
Count}'. 

Captain Dennis has always taken a vital interest in public affairs 
and leading social organizations and is Captain of Company "I," Sec- 
ond Regiment, National Guard. 

When war broke out between the United States and Spain in the 
spring of 1898, separate companies of the National Guard were mus- 
tered into the United States service, provisional companies were 
organized to supply their places in the armories. In Whitehall the 
109th Separate Company was organized and O. A. Dennis was elected 
its Captain. In this position he became very popular and shortly after 
the regular company returned from the war he was elected to his 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 547 

present position, that of Captain of Company "I," (9th Separate) 
Second Regiment, N. G. N. Y. 

As an officer Captain Dennis has exhibited unusual energy and 
ability and it is said by competent military critics that Company " I " 
has attained a personnel and efficiency superior to its previous status 
which is saying a good deal, as the company has always been con- 
sidered high class. 

Captain Dennis is also a member of the Odd Fellows; Whitehall 
Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F. ; Whitehall Encampment No. 69, and Canton 
Whitehall, as well as of the military order Loyal Legion of the United 
States. 

On November 19, 1890. Captain Dennis married Charlotte T. Davis, 
daughter of O. F. Davis, and they have a family of two children, 
namely: Louise Davis Dennis and Eunice Elizabeth Dennis. 

Captain Dennis is a son of George and Sarah (Tifft) Dennis. 



Hon. J. M. Whitman — This noted lawyer and orator was born near 
Lockhaven, Clinton County, Pennsylvania, December 27, 1847 and 
received a thorough elementary education in the district schools of 
his native place. He then took up the study of law and pursued it 
for four years at Freeport, Ills., and Lockhaven, Pa., after which he 
took a course in the Albany Law School and was graduated from that 
institution May 10, 1869. In the same year he was admitted to the 
bar and commenced the practice of his profession in his native place. 
In February 1872 he came to Sandy Hill and made it his permanent 
residence. He had not long been in Washington County before he 
began to take a prominent place in the bar of the county through his 
ability as a lawyer and his splendid gift of oratory, and soon he be- 
came noted as the most eloquent member of the Washington County 
bar, and one of its finest speakers. 

Were it not that he is a Democrat in politics and, therefore, among 
the minority in this abnormally Republican County, his talents and 
adaptability for public life would undoubtedly have led him into 
politics, and he would have held high public offices. He was ap- 
pointed County Judge by Governor Hill, November 10, 1886, and 
ably discharged the duties of that responsible office until December 
31. 1887. 



548 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

He has been a delegate to Democratic Conventions repeatedly. 
From the time he was admitted to the bar up to the present he has 
done a great deal of public speaking for the Democratic party. He 
stumped Pennsylvania in 1872 in the campaign in which Gen. John 
F. Hartranft was elected governor of that state and in 1876 he made 
many brilliant speeches for Samuel J. Tilden in his contest for the 
presidency. In 1880 he also took an active part in the presidential 
election and in 1884 he made over sixty speeches for Grover Cleve- 
land. He also worked in the campaigns of 1888, 1892 and 1896. 

In 1869 Judge Whitman married Mary H. Baldwin of Sandy Hill, 
and they have three sons, namely: Jesse S. Whitman. James M. 
Whitman, Jr., for nine years past a Topographer on the U. vS. Geo- 
graphical Survey, and Richard Peale Whitman. Judge Whitman's 
parents were Erasmus and Sarah (Shuler) Whitman, both natives of 
Pennsylvania. His grandfather, Jonathan Whitman, was a native of 
the State of Delaware. ■ His father's mother was a descendant from 
the Lindsey family, one of whom, his grandfather, was a patriot 
soldier in the Revolutionary War, and the gun he carried is still a 
cherished heirloom in the family. The family on both sides has been 
American for many generations, and the Whitmans were originally 
Irish and English and the Shulers Hollanders. 



Brodie G. Higley, one of the rising young lawyers of Washington 
County, was born in the town of Hartford, this County, October 9, 
1872, and received his early education in the district school of his 
native town. At the early age of seventeen he was teaching school, 
which vocation he pursued for three years, when he entered the Sandy 
Hill High school. He studied law in the office of Charles P. Coyle 
of Chestertown, N. Y., for three years and was admitted to the bar 
at the General Term at Albany, in April 1896, and to practice in the 
United States courts in 1900. He then taught school for another 
year after his admission to the bar, for although his aim had always 
been to enter the legal profession, he was desirous of equipping him- 
self with a finished literary education, so at the end of his year of 
teaching he entered Stanford University, California, in September, 
1896, and graduated with the degree of A. B. on January 13, 1899, 
after a highly creditable course. He then returned East and in 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 549 

March, 1899, beg-an the practice of his profession in the office of Hon. 
Charles R. Paris, with whom he is now associated. 

Mr. Higley has already attained a recognized standing in the bar 
of Washington County, and has been entrusted with the legal busi- 
ness of prominent people and business concerns; he does considerable 
business for banks and corporations, and recently represented the 
executors of the Charles Stone estate, amounting to eight hundred 
thousand dollars, which was in litigation. 

Mr. Higley is well versed in the law, has an admirably trained and 
well stored mind and is scrupulous, conscientious and careful in form- 
ing opinions and giving advice to clients. He is an able public 
speaker and holds the office of Orator in the order of the Royal 
Arcanum, of which he is a member. He is also a member of Sandy 
Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M. 

While a student in Stanford University Mr. Higley was president 
of his class and a member of the executive committee of the student 
body. He also took an active part in all debates and was connected 
with the debating societies. 

While residing in Chestertown he held the position of Town Clerk 
for two years and has taken an active part in politics ever since He 
is an unswerving Republican and was an officer of the Republican 
Club of Stanford University in 1898. While attending the University 
he produced some highly creditable literary work, among which 
might be mentioned " History of Distress and Replevin," "History 
of the Star Chamber," and " Public Services of Thomas Paine." 

Mr. Higley's parents were Capt. Julius H. and Lydia M. (Duel) 
Higley. 

[For genealogy see article on Capt. Julius H. Higley]. 



Charles G. Davis, one of the leading members of the Washington 
County bar, is a son of Nicholas and Almira (Wilcox) Davis, and was 
born in the town of Saratoga, Saratoga County, N. Y., May 27, 1847. 
He studied law in the law office of Pond & French in Saratoga 
Springs and afterward with Judge Potter in Whitehall. Mr. Davis 
was admitted to the bar in January, 1876, since which time he has 
been engaged in active and successfvil practice. 



550 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Alanson Douglass Bartholomew, one of the leading members of 
the bar of Washington County, was born in Whitehall, N. Y., Sep- 
tember 15, 1863. He was prepared for college at the Troy Confer- 
ence Academy, Poultney, Vt., and then took a course in the Syracuse 
University from which he was graduated with the degree of Ph. B. 
in the class of 1886. After graduating he took up the study of law in 
the office of Potter & Lillie at Whitehall, and entering the law depart- 
ment of Cornell University was graduated therefrom with the degree 
of L.L. B. in the class of 1888. 

During the years 1883 and 1887 he taught school for some terms. 
He was admitted to the bar in 1888 and spent some time in the edi- 
torial department of the West Publishing Company, publishers of law 
books in St. Paul, Minnesota. 

In 1890 Mr. Bartholomew opened his offices in Whitehall and began 
the active practice of his profession. He has always taken an active 
part in public affairs and is serving his second term as Justice of the 
Peace. He is also Town Police Justice and Notary Public. In 
politics he is a Republican. 

Military affairs have also entered largely into his career, and his 
record as a soldier is highly praiseworthy. He enlisted in the Ninth 
Separate Company, N. G. N. Y., in 1886 as a private, was promoted 
to corporal and then to sergeant in which capacity he served five 
years when he was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant. He 
served as second lieutenant with Company "I"' Second Regiment, 
New York Volunteer Infantry, during the Spanish war, and won high 
popularity both with officers and men. The Whitehall company re- 
turned home in splendid condition as compared with other companies, 
which fact is a reflection of high credit to its officers. Mr. Bartholo- 
mew was promoted in January, 1900, to the rank of first lieutenant of 
Company "I" (Ninth Separate) Second Regiment, N. G. N. Y. He 
is also prominent in social organizations; is a thirty-second degree 
mason; a member of Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M., of which he 
was Junior Warden ; is Past High Priest of Champlain Chapter; a 
member of Whitehall Council and of Washington Commandry No. ;^;^, 
Saratoga Springs. He is a Past Grand of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. 
O. O. F., and a member of Whitehall Encampment; also of the Phi 
Kappa Psi Fraternity, Syracuse University, and of the legal fraternity 
of Phi Delta Phi. 

In 1892 Mr. Bartholomew married Mabel E. Falkenbury, daughter 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 551 

of Joseph and Harriet Falkenbury, and they have three sons, namely: 
Alanson Douglass, Jr., Heman Almon, 2d. and Victor Herbert. 

Mr. Bartholomew's parents were Heman Almon and Alice L. 
(Douglass) BartholomiCW of Whitehall. He is descended from William 
Bartholomew, a Puritan, who came to Boston in the ship "'Griffin" in 
1634, and who was the first representative elected from the town of 
Ipswich. Mr. Bartholomew's forefathers were active in the Colonial 
wars; one holding a Captain's commission was killed in the famous 
" Narragansett Fort Fight" in 1675. Seven of Mr. Bartholomew's 
ancestors were enrolled in the American service during the Revolu- 
tionary War. The Bartholomews largely outnumber any other family 
in the town, twenty-seven voters of that name being enrolled in rgoo. 
all of them descended from Lemuel Bartholomew, who came from 
Connecticut and settled in the northern part of the town about 1769. 



William E. Young, a representative member of the bar of Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., was born at Sandy Hill, this county, Ma}^ 5, 
1857, and was educated at the free school. Early in life he took up 
the stud}' of law, which he read in the office of Hughes & Northup of 
Sandy Hill, and was admitted to the bar in January, 1880. 

Immediately after his admission to the bar. he began the active 
practice of his profession on his own account, but has always remained 
in the old chambers, long celebrated through their association with 
the name of Hughes & Northup. He served as Deputy Clerk of the 
Court of Claims for five years and then in conjunction with J. A. 
Kellogg, formed the law partnership of Young & Kellogg, which ex- 
isted until 1892, when it was dissolved by mutual consent. 

In 1889, Williiam E. Young married Carrie Chase, and they have 
two children. Chase Young and Cora Young. 

Mr. Young's parents were William H. and Marj'- Ann (Kinselaer) 
Young. His father was a farmer and civil engineer in the town of 
Kingsbury and is still living, with residence in Glens Falls. His 
mother died in August, 1899, sixty-five years after her marriage. 

Mr. Young's grandfather, Thomas H. Young, was a native of Ver- 
mont. His wife, Esther Hamilton, was at one time the only promi- 
nent American actress. 

William E. Young is a sound, reliable and upright counselor, who 
is well known throughout northern New York, and is everywhere 
highly popular. 



552 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Ho^f. A. Dallas Wait was born at Sandy Hill, Washington County, 
N. Y., September i, 1822, and was educated in the common schools 
and the high school which flourished in that village for a number of 
years, under the superintendence of Messrs. Woodworth & Barnes. 
In 1838 he began the study of law in the office of Rockwell & Green, 
eminent lawyers of Brooklyn, N. Y., and at that time doing a large 
business in both that city and New York. He subsequently con- 
tinued the study of law in the office of his father and also with James 
McCall at Sandy Hill, completing there the time required to be served 
as a student, before his examination for admittance to the bar. 

He was duly licensed as an Attorney and Counselor of the Supreme 
Coin-t and Solicitor in the Court of Chancery at the January term of 
the court held in the city of Albany in 1845. Hon. Joseph Potter 
and the late General Hughes were in the same class and admitted to 
practice at the same time. 

On his admission to the bar Hon. A. Dallas Wait commenced the 
practice of law associated with his father, Hon. Luther Wait, at Sandy 
Hill, N. Y. Hon. Luther Wait had for many years before this time 
been a practicing lawyer at Sandy Hill, and so continued for many 
years afterward. 

In the fall of 1846 Hon. A. Dallas Wait removed to Fort Edward 
and opened a law office there in company with the late John Parry 
under the firm name of Wait & Parry, and on the retirement of Mr. 
Parry from practice Mr. Wait continued with the late James L. Rey- 
nolds as a partner, the firm being Wait & Reynolds, until the death 
of Mr. Reynolds in 1876, since which date he has continued his prac- 
tice at Fort Edward alone. 

On December 11, 1855, Hon. A. Dallas Wait married Celina Bar- 
row, daughter of the late Hiram Barrow of Cambridge, N. Y. They 
have had eight children, three of whom still survive, namly: Celina, 
wife of Richard A. Lowe, a merchant in England, Walter A. Wait, of 
the law firm of Bell & Wait, Glens Falls, N. Y., and Miss Bertha E. 
Wait, of Fort Edward, a graduate of Fort Edward Collegiate Institute. 

Soon after his admission to the bar Hon. A. Dallas Wait was named 
by Governor Silas Wright and appointed an Examiner in Chancery 
and served in that office until the Court of Chancery was abolished. 

He was first elected County Judge of Washington County in the 
fall of 1855 and subsequently was twice re-elected to the same office, 
serving in all three terms. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 553 

Even before his admission to the bar Judge Wait took an active 
interest in politics and in all the presidential campaigns commencing 
in 1844, and until and including 1884, addressed many meetings of 
the party to which he adhered. He was "a born Democrat," of old 
New Hampshire stock and followed that faith devotedly and enthus- 
iastically until he joined the American or Know Nothing party in 
1855. He acted with that party until its dissolution when he returned 
to the Democratic party under the leadership of Stephen A. Douglass. 

On the breaking out of the Civil War Judge Wait at once took the 
side of the Union, holding that until the rebellion was subdued, it 
was the duty of all patriots, irrespective of party, to stand by the old 
flag and support the national administration. 

At a union convention held in Argyle in 1861 Judge Wait was ten- 
dered and accepted the nomination of District Attorney of the county 
and was elected and served as such for two consecutive terms. 

During the war, and ever since, Judge Wait has been a steadfast ad- 
herent of the Republican party and was a member of the State Com- 
mittee and Executive Comittee thereof for several years during and 
after the war. 

Dviring his long professional life Judge Wait has been employed as 
attorney and counsel in many important suits in the Supreme Court 
and Court of Appeals and has achieved a gratifying share of success, 
being well esteemed as a good lawyer both by the legal fraternity and 
the public at large. He has served much as Referee and in many im- 
portant actions in the Supreme Court in different counties in the 
state. He has also held terms of court in the adjacent counties, 
especially Saratoga and Rensselaer, at different times upon special 
invitation to hold such terms and has always presided with great 
acceptability. 

In all relations of public and private life Judge Wait has indicated 
a high reputation for integrity, industry, ability and devotion to duty 
in the performance of the WTjrk with which he has been charged 
officially or otherwise. He is President of the Board of Education of 
the village High vSchool and has served in that capacity for more than 
twenty years. He has been President of the village and is a director 
in and attorney for the First National Bank of Fort Edward and has 
held such connection with the bank since its organization. 

Judge Wait is still vigorous both in body and mind and continues 

[69J 



554 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HLSTORY. 

the active practice of law with no disposition to leave the field in 
which he has spent so many years of pleasure and profit, believing 
that the term of work for a man lasts during life if he has ability to 
do that work well and acceptably and during his long professional 
career he has won and retained the highest respect and confidence of 
his fellow men, not only because he is an able and accomplished law- 
yer, not only because on the bench he was a fair-minded and upright 
judge, but also because his whole life has been distinguished by hon- 
esty, honor and good citizenship. 



Silas E. Evarts was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
County, N. Y., September 17, 1867. He was educated in the public 
schools, Williams College, where he received the degree of A. B., and 
the University of New York, from which he was graduated in the 
class of 1892 with the degree of L. L. B. In this year he was also ad- 
mitted to the bar and was a law partner with District Attorney Sam- 
uel Thomas at Granville for two years, since which time he has been 
actively engaged in the practice of his profession alone. 

On June ro, 1892, Mr. Evarts married Lucina Woodard, daughter 
of Daniel Woodard, the President of the National Bank of Granville, 
and they have two children, namely: Palmer and Miriam. 

Mrs. Evarts' mother was Miriam McNitt, a native of Hebron, 
Washington County, N. Y. 

Mr. Evarts is a prominent member and Warden of Trinity Church 
and succeeded his father, Palmer D. Evarts, in the Wardenship. His 
grandfather,' Alonzo Evarts, was also Warden in the Episcopal Church. 

Palmer D. Evarts was born in 1844 and married Elizabeth Perry, 
daughter of Aschel Perry of Easton, N. Y. They had two children, 
Ruth Louise Evarts, who is a school teacher in New Jersey, and Silas 
E. Evarts, the subject of this sketch. 

Palmer D. Evarts was a farmer in Granville for many years, first 
m Easton and latterly in Granville, and was prominent as a citizen 
and also in politics. He died in 1894. 

Mr. Silas E. Evarts, although but a young man, has advanced to a 
prominent position in the bar of Washington County. He has a high 
reputation as a counselor and enjoys the fullest confidence of the com- 
inunity. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 555 

James Gibson, Jr., was born in Salem, N. Y., and was prepared for 
college at the Washing-ton Academy from which he was graduated in 
the class of 1890. He then entered Princeton University where he 
pursued the classical course for four years and graduated with the 
degree of A. B. in 1894. Leaving college he immediately took up 
the study of law and in 1898 he graduated from the Albany Law 
School and was admitted to the bar the same year. He then opened 
his office in Salem and began the active practice of his profession. 

Mr. Gibson possesses not only the advantages of a university educa- 
tion and natural abilities of a high order but also enjoys the prestige 
of an illustrious ancestry, so that he has not only sprung into a fine 
legal practice but is also highly popular as a public man. In 1899 he 
was elected President of the village of Salem and in December of the 
same year he was elected to the office of Master of Salem Lodge No. 
391, F. & A.. M., and during the same year was elected a trustee of 
the Washington Academy and of the Bancroft Public Library. He is 
also one of the vestrymen of St. Paul's Episcopal Church. 

Mr. Gibson is the son of James and Jennie (Cowan) Gibson and the 
grandson of Judge James Gibson who was State Senator from 1867 to 
1868 and County Judge from 1851 to 1857. He was also Worshipful 
Master of Salem Lodge No. 391, F. & A. M., and one of the most 
universally esteemed figures in law, politics and masonry not only in 
Washington County but throughout the entire State of New York. 



Robert R. Law, Official Court Stenographer, was born November 
30, 1854, and received his early education in the Cambridge Washing, 
ton Academy In 1873 he began the trade of printer with the Wash- 
ington County Post and was connected with that paper for a long 
time, both as editor and partner. 

On June 14, 1888, Mr. Law received the appointment of Official 
Court Stenographer for the Fourth Judicial District of the State of 
New York, a position which he still occupies. He was admitted to 
the bar in 1891. 

R. R. Law has been actively identified with the public affairs of 
Washington County for over twenty years. He was Clerk of the 
Board of Supervisors in 1879 and has been a member of the Board of 
Education since 1882. He was a strong advocate of the New High 
School building at Cambridge and served for some time as Clerk of 
the village. [See page 133, Part II.] 



556 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

George Scott, Town Clerk of Fort Edward, was born near Hook, 
in the town of Argyle, June 19, 1838, of Scotch-Irish ancestry. His 
father, John Scott, owned a farm in that vicinity, on which George 
spent his youthful days. 

His mother's name was Nancy Brown a daughter of James and 
Hannah Brown, all of whom were Presbyterians and members of the 
Rev. George Mairs' Church in the village of Argyle. 

His brothers are James, John, Robert and William. George 
attended the Hook school, Fort Edward Institute and the Argyle 
Academy, and at the breaking out of the Civil War he went to the 
front. 

He served in the Argyle Company of the 123d N. Y. Regiment 
and in the i6th United States Infantry. In the Argyle Company he 
was Orderly, or First Sergeant under Capt. Duncan Robertson, and 
near the close of the war he was transferred to the i6th United States 
Infantry. 

Always on duty, he participated in all the marches of the 123d 
Regiment, and took part in all of its skirmiishes and battles, including 
Chancellorsville, (xettysburg, Resaca, Cassville, New Hope Church, 
Lost Mountain, Pine Hill, Kenesaw, Kolb's Farm, Chattahoochee 
River, Peach Tree Creek and Atlanta. 

Before Atlanta had fallen Sergeant Scott was transferred to the 
i6th United States Infantry and took part in the battles in the 
rear of Atlanta, assisted in tearing up the railroad at East Point, and 
was in the battle of Jonesboro, where a decisive victory for the Union 
sealed the fate of Atlanta. 

After the fall of Atlanta the i6th United States Infantry was 
ordered back to Lookout. Mountain, where, on the 4th of October, 
1864, he received an honorable discharge from the United States ser- 
vice, with honorable mention in his discharge for his services in the 
battle of Jonesboro. 

After his discharge, instead of returning home, he started for the 
front again, and left Chattanooga as a passenger on top of a freight 
car, in order to reach Sherman's men at Atlanta. But at this time 
Hood's army was beginning to march north and the freight train on 
which Mr. Scott was a passenger, had soon to face burning culverts 
and bridges, and the conductor ran it back to Chattanooga. Mr. 
Scott, with three other soldiers, however, did not return. Each vol- 
unteered to go on, and after experiencing tnany hardships and priva- 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 557 

tions on their long march in endeavoring to avoid Hood's men, in- 
stead of trying to find any of them, they succeeded in joining the 
Union forces at Atlanta. 

George Scott was captured on October 19, 1864, at Vinings Station, 
near Atlanta, by Wheeler's Cavalry, and was sent to Cahaba prison 
and soon after to the prison pen at Millen, and was subsequently 
transferred to Andersonville, where he remained a prisoner through 
the winter of 1864-5, and was among the last released in the spring, 
reaching the Union lines at Jacksonville, Fla., on April 28, 1865, after 
the war closed, and he arrived on the steamer "Daniel Webster" at 
Parole Camp, Annapolis, Md., May 10. 1865. 

A few years after the war was over Mr. Scott married Elizabeth, a 
daughter of Peter Tierce Finn and Mary (Cozzens) Finn.. He has 
one daughter, Mary E. 

Peter Tierce Finn was a son of William Finn, one of the early 
settlers of Fort Edward. William Finn married Mary, or Polly 
Tierce, who was a daughtei of Major Peter Bailey Tierce, a Major in 
Colonel Willett's Regiment in the Revolutionary War. The wife of 
Major Tierce was Polly Hunter, a daughter of Robert Hunter, who 
was a son of the Colonial Governor of that name. Polly Hunter's 
mother was Catherine Campbell, a name that is linked with Jane 
McCrea history. 

Catherine Campbell was the daughter of Sarah (Gordon) Eraser and 
Archibald Campbell, who was a son of Major Duncan Campbell, of 
the " Black Watch," or 42d Highland Regiment, and who fell mor- 
tally wounded at Ticonderoga, July 8, 1758. His remains are 
interred in the Union Cemetery at Fort Edward. 

Mr. Scott was admitted to practice law at the February General 
Term of the Supreme Court at Albany in 187 i. He was a member of 
the Assembly in 1885, when he was made Chairman of the Committee 
on Petitions of Aliens, and was a member of the Committee on General 
Laws. 

At present he is practicing law, and a member of the vestry of St. 
James Church, and Commander of C. E. Mills Post No. 491, Depart- 
ment of New York, G. A. R. 



558 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Hon. Willard Robinson, the subject of this sketch, who is a prom- 
inent member of the Washington County bar, was born at West 
Hebron July 20, 1859, and was educated at the Union school of Fort 
Edward. After leaving school he was engaged in business with his 
father in Fort Edward from 1876 until 1887. In the latter year he 
began the study of law, which he pursued in the office of Edgar Hull, 
at Fort Edward, until 1891, when he was admitted to the bar at the 
General Term in Albany, N. Y. Immediately after his admission he 
opened an office in Fort Edward where he has since continued the 
practice of his profession with much success. He is distinguished for 
his knowledge of the law, his sound judgment and high integrity, 
which have led both to appointments and election to office. 

On March 26, 1888, he was appointed Justice of the Peace to fill a 
vacancy, and in 1891 was elected to the same office for a period of 
four years, to which he was again re-elected in 1895. In March, 1898 
he was elected Police Justice for a term of three years. 

Judge Robinson has always taken an intelligent interest in public 
affairs and is an active worker in the interests of his party. He is at 
present Chairmain of the Republican Town Committee. 

In 1882 Judge Robinson married Augusta L. Gibbon and they have 
five children, viz: Clara May, Elsie Gertrude, Florence Livingston, 
Leslie Gibbon and Francis Willard. 

Judge Robinson's parents were John J. and Margaret B. (Cogg- 
shall) Robinson. The founder of the Robinson family in America 
was John Robinson, who came to America from Monahan, Ireland, in 
1 791, when he was a- young man twenty-one years of age. One of 
his ancestors was an officer in Cromwell's Army. He settled in the 
town of Argyle and was Justice of the Peace for forty years and 
reared a family of ten children. His son, James Robinson, was the 
father of John J. Robinson, the father of Willard Robinson. Judge 
Robinson's great-grandfather, Livingston, received a large grant in 
the town of Hebron, Washington County, so. that on both sides Judge 
Robinson's ancestors have been identified with the history of Wash- 
ington County from the earliest days. The branches of the family 
are numerous and are spread all over the country and have many rep- 
resentatives in the ministry. 

Judge Robinson is a member of Washington Council No. 261, 
Royal Arcanum, and has passed all the chairs. He has also been 
twice delegate to the Grand Council of the State of New York. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 559 

Judge Frederick A. Bratt was born in the town of Easton, Wash- 
ington County, December 2, 1855, and was educated at the Fort Ed- 
ward Institute and the Hudson River Institute. He studied law' in 
the oflfice of Hon. A. D. Wait, at Fort Edward, and was admitted to 
the bar at the General Term at Albany. N. Y., in January, 1882. 
Immediately after his admission to the bar he began the practice of 
his profession in Fort Edward where he has met with distinctly 
marked success. He was elected Special County Judge in the fall of 
1898 for a term of four years. In politics Judge Bratt is a Republican 
and is a consistent adherent of his party. 

Judge Bratt married Fannie Parish, of Fort Edward, N. Y. His 
parents were William P. and Jemima C. (Van Antwerp) Bratt. Peter 
Yates Van Antwerp was her father and he was a nephew of Colonel 
Yates of Revolutionary fame. Judge Bratt's grandfather, Nicholas- 
Bratt, was born near the city of Albany and lived to be one hundred 
and three years of age. 

Judge Bratt has not only been successful as a lawyer, and has 
achieved a high reputation from his able handling of large and im- 
portant cases that have gone through his hands, but since his eleva- 
tion to the bench he has proved himself an able and competent judge, 
and no appeal has ever been taken against him in the county. 



Alfred G. Hill, a lawyer of Cambridge, N. Y., was born in South 
Easton, Washington County, N. Y., in 1867. He was prepared for 
college at the Greenwich Union school and in 1885, at the age of 
eighteen, he entered Williams College, where, after a highly credit- 
able course, he was graduated in the class of 1889. 

After leaving college he secured a position in the Census Office, 
Interior Department at Washington, D. C, and while there improved 
his evenings by attending the Columbian University Law School, 
from which he was graduated in the class of '92. He remained in the 
Census Department until the death of his father. May 5, 1893, when 
he returned home. 

After serving one year as clerk and student in the office of Hon. D. 
M. Westfall at Cambridge, N. Y., he was admitted to the bar in De- 
cember, 1894. His connection as managing clerk for Hon. D. M. 
Westfall soon resulted in a partnership, under the firm name of 



560 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Westfall & Hill. This partnership was formed in October, 1895, and 
still continues. 

During his residence in Cambridge he has been Clerk of the Board 
of Trustees for three years and Treasurer of the Board of Education 
for four years. He is a prominent Mason and is Master of Cambridge 
Valley Lodge No. 481, having occupied that chair since 1898. 

On August 30, 1899, Mr. Hill married Fannie Robertson, daughter 
of the late James E. Robertson of Coila, N. Y. 

Mr. Hill's father, James Hill, was a prominent man in Washington 
County. He resided in Easton and was a successful business man and 
farmer. He served three years as Sheriff of Washington County, and 
was many times elected Supervisor of the town of Easton. 

At the sessions of the County Legislature he distinguished himself 
for his executive ability and was for years a strong factor in county 
politics. 

Alfred G. Hill is one of the best known young lawyers of Washing- 
ton County. He has always been a student and makes a thorough 
and systematic study of all his cases. 



W. L. Sawyer, a talented and rising young lawyer of Sandy Hill, 
was born in this place and after a preparatory education in the local 
schools he entered Union College from which he was graduated in the 
class of '95, after a highly creditable course. 

Having decided to enter the legal profession Mr. Sawyer read law 
in the office of A. D. Arnold and also with L. H. Northup and was 
admitted to the bar July 6, 1897. 

Immediately after being admitted Mr. Sawyer began the practice 
of his profession in the old offices, long ago rendered notable through 
the occupancy of Hughes & Northup, and here he has already achieved 
a reputation that would do credit to many an older man. He was 
elected Justice of the Peace in March, 1896, and was re-elected in 
March, 1899. Besides his college societies he is a member of the 
New York State Historical Society. 

W. L. Sawyer is a son of the Rev. E. R. Sawyer, D.D., Baptist 
minister at Sandy Hill since 1870, and one of the most highly appre- 
ciated divines of the county. His grandfather. Rev. Reuben Sawyer, 
was also a Baptist minister. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 561 

Alonzo Augustus Burhy, a representative member of the bar of 
Washington County, was born November i6, 1873, ^^ the town of 
Fort Edward, and received his education in the Fort Edward Union 
school and the Fort Edward Institute, graduating from the latter in 
1887. He taught school for five years, and during that time began 
the study of law with Hon. A. D. Wait and was admitted to the bar 
December 6, 1894, at the General Term at Albany, N. Y. He then 
began the practice of his profession at Fort Edward where he has 
already achieved prominent recognition at the bar of the county. 

In 1893 Mr. Burby was elected Justice of the Peace for a term of 
four years, and in May, 189S, was appointed Deputy Factory Inspector. 

In politics Mr. Burby is a Republican and is noted both as an 
organizer and as an orator. As a public speaker he has few equals 
in the State and in this direction has achieved a reputation uniisual 
for a man of his years and he enjoys the advantages, not only of an 
excellent education, but of a fine literary mind. 

Mr. Burby is a member of the Knights of Columbus, Fort Edward 
Council No. 336 of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Division No. 3, 
Fort Edward, and has been president of this division since its organ- 
ization. He is also a member of the Bibby Hose Company and of the 
Fortnightly Club, of which he has been Treasurer since its organiza- 
tion. 

Mr. Burby 's parents were John J. and Anna L. (Lynch) Burby. 
His father was a native of Ireland, but his mother was born in this 
country and is a southern lady. Her people were Americans for 
many generations and she is a direct descendant of Thomas Lynch, 
one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. 



JuRDEN E. Seeley, the well known lawyer of Granville, is a son of 
John I. and Avis A. (Oatman) Seeley, and was born in Hartford,, 
Washington County, July 30, 1858. He studied law in the law offices 
of Pond, French & Brackett at Saratoga Springs, and was admitted to 
the bar May 4, 1881, and the same year located in Granville, where 
he formed a partnership with Levi D. Temple. In about a year Mr. 
Seeley purchased his partner's interest and continued his legal busi- 
ness alone until September, 1892, when he admitted John Gilroy of 
Richfield Springs, N. Y. This firm was dissolved in 1896. 

[70J 



562 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Cornelius L. Allen was born in Salem, Washington County, N. 
Y., in 1847. He was prepared for college in the Washington Academy 
at Cambridge, N. Y., and entered Norwich University in the fall of 
1863. He remained in this institution during his freshman year, but 
the next autumn went to Yale University from which he was gradu- 
ated in the class of '67. He then took a course of study at the Albany 
Law School and was duly admitted to the bar. He began the prac- 
tice of his profession with his father. Judge C. L. Allen of Salem, and 
by reason of his high intellectual endowment and brilliant oratorical 
powers, soon became widely and favorably known. In 187 1 he was 
elected Justice of the Peace for Salem and continued in that office for 
three consecutive terms. 

In 1869 he married Ada Lansing Russell and they had a family of 
eight children, four of whom are living: Christine Lansing, born 
1869, died 1890; Kate, born 1871; Edward Cornelius, born 1872; 
Sarah Elizabeth, born 1874, died 1874; Bessie, born 1875, died 1883; 
David Russell, born 1877; Cornelius Lansing born 1881, died 1881; 
Constance W.,_born 1890. 

Mr. Allen's parents were Judge C. L. Allen and Sarah Hester 
(Russell) Allen. Judge C. L. Allen was Judge of the Supreme Court 
Bench from 185 1 to 1859. The Allen ancestry can be traced to Queen 
Anne's time. Mr. Allen's maternal grandmother was of the Lansing 
family which founded Lansingburgh, N. Y. 



CoL. Solomon W. Russell was born at Luzerne, Warren County, 
N. Y., July 5, 1836. He entered Union College, but in the middle of 
his course gave up his studies and raised the first company of volun- 
teers in Salem for service in the War of the Rebellion. His com- 
pany was mustered into the 2d New York Volunteer Cavalry, as Com- 
pany A, in September 1861. He was elected Captain of his company. 
His regiment was mustered out at Washington, March 30, 1862, and 
he was afLerwards commissioned Adjutant of the i8th New York Vol- 
unteer Infantry and at the expiration of his term of enlistment he was 
commissioned First Lieutenant 49th New York Volunteer Infantry. 
He was breveted Major for services at the battle of Cedar Creek, 
Va., and promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel for gallant and meritorious 
services before Petersburg and at the battle of Sailor's Creek, Va. 
He was honorably discharged at Buffalo, N. Y., in June, 1865. His 
entire service was in. the 6th Army Corps. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 563 

At the battle of Rappahannock, November 7, 1863, Colonel Russell 
was shot through the body while jumping his horse over the enemy's 
works during a charge. He was carried from the field insensible and 
taken to Armory Square Hospital, Washington, D. C, and afterwards 
to Seminary Hospital, Georgetown. In May, 1864, he again reported 
for duty; joined the anny at Spottsylvania, and served continuously 
to the end of the war. 

After the war Colonel Russell began the practice of his profession 
in Salem and has continued it there ever since. 

Colonel Russell has been President of the village of Salem for more 
than a quarter of a century and President of the Board of Education 
for a period equally long. He is a prominent Mason and Past Com- 
mander of A. L. McDougal Post No. 570, G. A. R. He was a Dem- 
ocrat until the first election of President Cleveland, but has since 
been a Republican. He was a delegate to the National Convention 
at St. Louis, in 1876, which nominated Samuel J. Tilden. 

On August 16, 1866, Colonel Russell married Anna A., daughter of 
Lucius and Rosena (Ashton) Dixon, of Warrenton, Va. Their child- 
ren are: Solomon W. Russell, Jr., a lawyer of Salem, Dixon P., Anna 
A., Rosena E., Alice P., Zada T., Mary S. and Sarah H. 



Royal C. Betts was born in Pawlet, Vt., June 18, 1835, and stud- 
ied law in the oiifice of Fayette Porter of that place, and with O. F. 
Thompson of Granville. He was admitted to the bar in 1859 and 
opened an office in that place. In 1863 he was elected special County 
Judge of Washington County and was re-elected in 1867. He was 
elected Supervisor of his town in 1867, and again in 1868. In the fall 
of 1868 he was elected District Attorney of the County and was re- 
elected in 1 87 1. 



Dennis J. Sullivan is a son of John and Catharine (O'Brien) Sulli- 
van, and was born in the town of Horicon, Warren County, N. Y., 
April 2, 1857. In 1875 he entered the law office of the late Hon. U. 
G. Paris, and was admitted to the bar of the State of New York, at 
the November term, 1878. Since his admission to the bar Mr. Sul- 
livan has been engaged in the general practice of law at Sandy Hill 
and has held different public offices. 



564 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Judge A. N. Richard, one of the best known lawyers in Sandy Hill, 
and a popular citizen of this village, was born in Glens Falls, Warren 
County, March 24, 1857. He was educated in the Fort Edward In- 
stitute and the Island Grove school and read law in the office of Rob- 
ert Armstrong, Fort Edward, N. Y. He was admitted to the bar in 
1884, but did not immediately take up the practice of his profession, 
but traveled west and south in other interests for some time. In 1890 
he settled in Luzerne, and began the active practive of his profession 
wjth much success, but after a residence of five years in that place he 
came to Sandy Hill in 1895 to be in a larger and more active center 
and made it his permanent residence. Here he has become a strong 
factor in the legal profession. He was appointed Justice of the Peace 
in 1899 and subsequently was elected to the same office. 

In politics Jv:dge Richard was a Democrat until 1894, since which 
date he has been an out and out Republican. 

In 1S95 Judge Richard married Mary Davison. The family consists 
of four children living, three daughters and one son, namely: Ethel, 
Anna, Clara and Earl. 

Judge Richard's parents were M. D. and Maryette (Wing) Richard. 
His father, M. D. Richard, was a lumberman. His grandfather, Ed- 
mond Richard, was a native of Connecticut, but removed to Genesee 
County, N. Y., and subsequently to Warren County, where he died 
at the advanced age of 93 years. 

Judge A. N. Richard is a genial and affable gentleman, popular 
with a host of friends and acquaintances and enjoying the confidence 
and respect of all who know him. 



RuFUS R. Davis was born in the village of Whitehall, September 71 
1857, and is a son of Oscar F. and Charlotte T. (Rowe) Davis. He' 
began reading law with his father, and in 1881 was admitted to the 
bar, since which time he has been actively engaged in the practice of 
law with his father, under the firm name of O. F. & R. R. Davis. 
This firm has a good general law practice and a splendid law library. 



John Parry of Sandy Hill became a member of the firm of Wait 
& Parry at Fort Edward, the senior member being Hon. A. Dallas 
Wait. Mr. Parry, after a few years, abandoned law for the lumber 
business. He died during the War of the Rebellion. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 565 

Frederick I. Baker was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., May 29, 1844, and was educated by private tuition 
in his native village, at a school in Montreal and the Fort Edward In- 
stitute. He studied law in the office of Hon. Joseph Potter at White- 
hall, and was admitted to the bar in 1865. Immediately after his ad- 
mission he opened a law office in Minneapolis, Minn., where he re- 
mained one and one-half years. He then returned to Fort Ann and 
embarked in the iron ore business with his father and others, and con- 
tinued in this industry for about ten years. He then resumed the 
practice of law in Fort Ann, which he has continued ever since. 

Mr. Baker is a Democrat in politics and has twice held the position 
of Postmaster at Fort Ann, for terms of four years each, under the 
two administrations of President Cleveland. He also served as Jus- 
tice of the Peace for five years and was counsel for the village of Fort 
Ann for eighteen years. 

He received the appointment as postmaster from President Cleve- 
land upon the strength of his own letter without any outside influence. 
He has been a member of the Democratic County Committee for the 
past twenty years with the exception of one year when he was post- 
master. He has been delegate to six Democratic State Conventions 
and has been Chairman of the Town Committee continuously since 
1876. 

In 1869 Frederick I. Baker married Harriet Rice, daughter of John 
Rice, an old family of Fort Ann. The Baker family was formerly of 
Granville. Mr. Baker's great-grandfather, Benjamiin Baker and his 
brother, Nathaniel, were among the first settlers of that town, and 
the family was one'of the most prominent in that part of the county. 
Benjamin Baker was one of the first half dozen residents assessed in 
Granville. 

Frederick I. Baker's parents were Amyel and Salome (Bigelow) 
Baker. Atnyel Baker came to the town of Fort Ann from Granville 
in 1835. He was engaged in the lumber and mining industries for 
many years. 



General James C. Rogers of Sandy Hill studied law with A. C. 
Hand in Elizabethtown. He entered the army soon after the Civil 
War broke out and rose to the rank of Brigadier-General. He was 
Member of the Assembly in 1866, since which he has devoted himself 
entirely to his profession. 



566 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Robert O. Bascom was born at Orwell, Addison County, Vt., 
November i8, 1855. He received his literary education in the com- 
mon schools and the high schools of Brandon and Shoreham, Vt., 
and at the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, graduating from the 
latter institution in 1876. He began the study of law in 1880 in the 
office of Don D. Winn where he remained for a short time after which 
he entered the office of Hon. Edgar Hull with whom he remained 
until admitted to the bar September 14, 1883. Immediately after his 
admission he began the practice of his profession in Fort Edward and 
has not only been successful, but has attained the position of one of 
the foremost lawyers in Washington County. He is not only a sound 
counselor but is a speaker of a high order. He makes a careful study 
of all his cases and when in court handles them admirably. 

In politics Mr. Bascom is a Republican and has been Chairman of 
the Republican County Committee for two years, of which committee 
he has been a member for many years. 

On December 20, 1882, Robert O. Bascom married Mary L. Piatt, 
daughter of Myron and Sarah E. (Larabee) Piatt. They have a 
family of three children, namely: Wyman S., Robert P. and Fred G. 

Mr. Bascom's parents were Samuel H. and Elizabeth (Clark) Bas- 
com, both of whom were natives of Vermont. 

Mr. Bascom traces his ancestors back to Thomas Bascom, a native 
of England, who came to America in 1634 and settled in Windsor, 
Conn. He had a son, Thomas, Jr., who was born in Connecticut, 
February 20, 1641 or 1642. 

His son was Thomas the third, and was born in Northampton, Mass., 
in 1668. He had a son, Ezekiel, who was born at Northampton, 
Mass., November 22, 1700, and his son Elias, was born at Hatfield, 
Mass., December 19, 1737. He had a son, Artemidorus, who was 
born at Northfield, Mass., May 8, 1774, and his son_ Samuel H. Bas- 
com, was the father of the subject of this sketch and was born Feb- 
ruary 27, 1819, in Orwell, Vt. 

Elias Bascom was a soldier in the Revolutionary War and was 
present at the surrender of Burgoyne. Ezekiel Bascom was a soldier 
in the Colonial wars of 1723 to 1725. 

From the foregoing it will be seen that the Bascom family ranks 
among the oldest in America, and that at least one member of the 
family participated in the struggle which led to the establishment of 
the American Republic. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 567 

In addition to his large legal practice Mr. Bascom gives attention 
to other important subjects and affairs. He is Assistant Secretary of 
the New York State Historical Association and has done a great deal 
towards furthering the interests of that intelligent body. He is also 
a member of Fort Edward Lodge No. 267, F. & A. M., of the Royal 
Arcanum, Fort Edward Council, and is a charter member of the Fort 
Edward Club. His ability as a speaker brings him before the public 
in connection with social and public matters, and he is alwaj^s willing 
to aid every worthy cause with his voice and influence. 

Mrs. Bascom is a lady of fine intelligence and high culture. She 
takes a deep interest in all literary matters, especially historical sub- 
jects and writings. She is a direct descendant of Richard Piatt, who 
came from England in 1638 and settled at New Milford, Conn. Sen- 
ators Orville C. Piatt of Connecticut and Thomas C. Piatt of New 
York are also descended from Richard Piatt. 

Mrs. Bascom was one of the charter members and is Registrar of 
the Jane McCrea Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolu- 
tion. 



Archibald S. Derby, one of the younger members of the Washing- 
ton County bar, was born at Sandy Hill, Washington County, N. Y., 
and was educated at Union College, from which he was graduated 
with the degree of Ph. B.. in the class of 1896, and at the Harvard 
Law School where he was graduated in the class of 1899 with the de- 
gree of L.L. B. He was admitted to the bar at Albany in 1899 and 
immediately began the practice of his profession at Sandy Hill in the 
old chambers of Hughes & Northup. 

Mr. Derby is the son of Hon. John H. Derby of Sandy Hill. 



J. Sanford Potter, son of Hon. Joseph and Catherine E. (Boies) 
Potter, was born June 27, 1848, and was educated at the Norwich Uni- 
versity and Williams College. He was admitted to the bar in 187 1 
and became a member of the law firm of Potter, Tanner & Potter. 
This firm subsequently became Tanner & Potter and finally Potter & 
Lillie, which is today one of the leading law firms of the county. 



568 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Hon. a. D. Arnold, one of the best known lawyers in north- 
eastern New York, was born in the town of Hartford, Washington 
County, N. Y., and received his literary education at the Albany 
Normal School and the Troy Conference Academy, Poultney, Vt. 
Having- decided upon the law as his life profession he entered the old 
historic office of HugJies & Northup at Sandy Hill, and after the regu- 
lar course of study was admitted to the bar at the General Term in 
Albany in 1882. Early in his student years he evinced the executive 
ability and capacity for handling cases which have since won him 
distinction and he became managing clerk for Hughes & Northup in 
1879. This position he held for a period of four years, finally resign- 
ing, in 1883, to continue the practice of his profession by himself. He 
accordingly opened the office in Sandy Hill which he has since occu- 
pied and at once assumed a prominent place in the bar of Washington 
County. He has not only built up a large practice, but has achieved 
a high reputation both as an advocate and counsellor. 

A staunch and active Republican as well as an able lawyer he soon 
became prominent in political as well as legal circles, and after hav- 
ing served two terms as County Clerk he was nominated by the Re- 
publican party for special County Judge in 1886 and was elected to 
that position for a term of four years in the fall of that year. 

So satisfactorily and admirably did he perform the duties of this 
office that he was re-elected for two succeeding terms, making three 
terms in all which he occupied the bench, covering a period of twelve 
years from January ist, 1887, to December 31, 1898. 

Judge Arnold also takes an active interest in church and social 
affairs. He is a prominent Mason, being a member of Sandy Hill 
Lodge No. 372, F. & A, M., of which he has been Master, and is a 
Trustee of the Baptist church at Sandy Hill, which office he has held 
continuousl}^ since April 15, 1887. He is also clerk of the Board of 
Trustees of this church and has held that office since 1889. 

On December 5, 1888. Hon. A. D. Arnold married Hattie E. Hand, 
daughter of Josiah and S. Jean Hand of Sandy Hill. They have one 
daughter. Miss S. Jean Arnold. 

The Hand family came from Rhode Island to Sandy Hill in the 
early days and built the fourth house erected in this village. Mrs. 
Hand, Mrs. Arnold's mother, lived in Sandy Hill from 181 2 until 
September 21, 1900, the date of her death, and the house in which 
she last lived was but a short distance from the original homestead. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 569 

Judge Arnold's parents were Levi and Eunice (Brayton) Arnold of 
Hartford, Washington County, N. Y. Levi Arnold died in 1886 and 
his* wife Eunice died September 3, 1901. 



Abner Robertson was born in Salem, Washington County, N. Y., 
December 13, 1848. He attended the common schools of his native 
place and continued his studies at the Washington Academy and at a 
private school in Greenwich, N. Y. Having a strong taste for the 
law, on leaving school he determined to make it his profession, and 
forthwith entered the office of Judge Gibson at Salem, where for 
several years he read law and was in 1870 admitted to the bar at the 
General Term of the Supreme Court at Schenectady, N. Y. He 
immediately entered upon the practice of his profession at Salem, N. 
Y., and from the first displayed such pronounced ability in the gath- 
ering of pertinent facts, in foreseeing distant contingencies, and with 
his clear and forceful language before a jury, his services have 
been widely sought, and his practice of the general and civil law has 
been one of uninterrupted and constantly increasing success. 

Mr. Robertson has always been devoted to the best interests of the 
Republican party, and now holds the office of Justice of the Peace, 
having for the second time been elected to that position. He has for 
twenty years been a prominent member of Salem Lodge, No. 45, 
L O. O. F. 

On September 3, 1889, Mr. Robertson was united in marriage to 
Mrs. Josephine Van Decar of the town of Crescent, Saratoga County, 
N. Y. 

Mr. Robertson is the son of Abner C. and Eliza M. (Woodworth) 
Robertson of Cambridge. His grandfather was born in Scotland, 
but came to America before the Revolution, in which war he served 
with distinction as a commissioned officer. 



Hon. John H. Boyd was born July 31, 1799, ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ '^^ ^^""^ 
foremost jurists of his day in Washington County, as well as one of 
the leading men of this part of the state. He practiced law in White- 



570 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

hall for over forty years, was elected Justice of the Peace in 1828 and 
served as Special Surrogate from January i, 1857, to December. 31, 
1859. He was elected to the State Senate in 1840, and sat in the 
United States Congress from March 4, 185 1 to March 3, 1853. On 
January 6, 1830, he married Lucretia Adams, who died September 4, 
1831. On November 20, 1834, he married Margaret W. Billings. Of 
her issue, Mary E., John Williams and William Thomas survived 
her. She died October 31, 1844. On June 30, 1849, Mr. Boyd mar- 
ried Catherine I. Bunce, who survived him by thirty years, and died 
July 2, 1898. Their daughter. Kate Lucretia, is the wife of Charles 
W. Harding, of Whitehall. John H. Boyd died July 2, 1868, at 
Whitehall. 



Albert V. Pratt is the son of Myron and Elizabeth (Van Ness) 
Pratt and was born at Fort Edward, Washington County, N. Y., June 
30, 1858. In January, 1884, he became a student in the law office of 
Robert Armstrong, Jr., of Fort Edward. In 1886 he was admitted to 
the bar and since then has built up a good practice, being active in 
his profession. 



PART II. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 




C^yViy^r^z.-^'t.^.t,^ r.--<^^;5^^_ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 



Hiram Allen. — The successful business man is the most important 
factor in the world of today, the tendency of which is so markedly 
commercial, and in which such vast numbers of men and families 
depend upon the industrial enterprises for their livelihood. "What is 
the most popular politician, or the architect who plans a temple, to 
the man who builds up a great and permanent industry, maintaining 
scores of men and their families? 

There is probably not in Washington County today another man, 
besides the subject of this sketch, who has built up a great industrial 
enterprise and still conducts the same. 

Hiram Allen was born in the town of Galway, Saratoga County, N. 
Y., January 14, 1831, and was educated at the Rhinebeck Academy, 
under the late Prof. William McLaren, of Edinburgh University, 
Scotland. 

Mr. Allen's father, Elihu Allen, owned a small farm in Saratoga 
County, but being desirous of extending his business, he, with a 
neighbor, began to make paper on a small scale at Stillwater. This 
was in 1846. Eleven years later his sons, Hiram Allen and his brother 
Loren established themselves at Sandy Hill and began paper making 
on a small scale, but from that nucleus the present large and expand- 
ing industry of the Allen Brothers Company has gTown. They began 
business under the name of Allen Brothers, and so continued until 
1890, when the incorporated company as it exists today was formed. 
The officers of the company are Hiram Allen, pj-esident, Loren Allen, 
vice president, and Marcus C. Allen, secretary. When Allen Brothers 
began operations at Sandy Hill they had one small machine with a 
capacity of 600 pounds a day. At the end of a year they were turning- 
out 1,300 pounds daily; now they turn out from sixty to seventy tons 
per diem, while their plant occupies eight acres of ground and is still 
expanding. Addition after addition has been added on to meet the 



4 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ever increasing volume of business, the response to able manage- 
ment, and the last is a wing projecting out over the Hudson, 
almost upon the face of Bakers Falls. They are also putting in 
a switch from the main line to their mills, so as to facilitate the 
shipping of their product and bringing in of pulp. The mills are 
run night and day and 130 opertives are employed, and this concern 
is among the most important in its line in America. Allen Brothers 
Company are largely interested in the Alice Falls Company, which 
has a pulp mill at Keeseville. where forty hands are employed, and 
which supplies them with about one-third of the pulp for their paper 
mills, which consume over fifty tons daily. 

Mr. Hiram Allen, the president of the company, has been the guid- 
ing genius of this great enterprise, from its inception in 1857 up to 
the present time. It has been his life work and its great success is a 
living tribute to his energy, executive ability and business capacity. 
It would naturally be supposed that the building up and constant 
supervision of such a business would wear a man down, but ]\Ir. Allen 
has kept young, both in activity and appearance, a notable exception 
to the rule, generall}' stated, that business life in this country wears 
men out rapidly. 

In politics Mr. Allen is a staunch Republican, but has never sought 
and never would accept office; the success and fostering of his own 
enterprise being his one great aim. He is a trustee of the Baptist 
Church, in which he takes great interest. He was Superintendent of 
the Baptist Sunday School for a period of nearly forty years and he 
still holds an abiding interest in the success of the school. 

Mr. Allen's parents were Elihu and Laura (Cornell) Allen. His 
grandfather was John Allen, who came to Saratoga County from New 
Bedford, Massachusetts. The family is an old American one and the 
original progenitor was English. 



Hon. George L. Clemoxs, Ex-Treasurer of Washington County, 
and one of its most prominent men, is a native and lifelong resident 
of this county. He was born in the town of Dresden May 10, 1841, 
received his education in the public schools and was engaged in the 
occupation of farming until twenty years of age. Immediately upon 
the breaking out of the Civil War, Mr. demons enlisted to aid the 




^if£7-^ ^'f^'&s^s O^irc/^ 1 



^J^^^^Hz i^AT^^^-i^^irj^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 5 

Union cause, on July i, 1861. He was mustered into Company A, 
87th Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, and in October, 1862, 
was promoted to the rank of Corporal for gallantry in the face of the 
enemy. He participated in all the operations of his regiment, includ- 
ing a number of pitched battles, and w^as wounded in the great seven 
day fight. He received his honorable discharge at Fortress Monroe, 
Virginia, in November, 1862. 

After being mustered out he returned to Dresden and engaged in 
boating and purchasing lumber and was so occupied until 1874, when 
he embarked in the mercantile business by establishing a general 
mercantile store at Dresden, and this house is today recognized as 
one of the leaders in its line in Washington County. One of the 
features of his place of business is a gas plant which furnishes the 
light both for his store and residence. Another interesting feature 
of his grounds is an old British field piece, which was found in the 
river after Burgoyn's surrender, presumably thrown there by the en- 
emy to keep it from falling into the hands of the Americans. Mr. 
Clemons takes a great interest not only in historic relics, but in archae- 
ology generally, and is a student of everything relating to other days 
and all races of mankind. 

His business premises comprise tw^o floors, 57x86 feet, and a wing, 
also two floors, 24x26 feet. The establishment is equipped with a 
money carrier system and he also has a mill for grinding feed and 
sawing wood. Besides his mercantile business, Mr. Clemons is 
largely interested in the lumber and wood pulp enterprises, in which 
his operations average $75,000 yearly. He owns a telephone line 
twenty miles long, which extends to Lake George, and he is president 
of the Co-operant Telephone Company. He also owns a yacht on 
Lake George which he uses both for pleasure and towing purposes, 
and is himself a licensed engineer and pilot of the first grade. 

In his business relations Mr. Clemons is noted for his integrity, fair 
dealing and honorable methods, and his record as a public officer 
shows him not only to be a man of fine abilites and high appreciation 
of public duty, but that record has ever been stainless. He has been 
postmaster at Dresden for nearly twenty years, having first received 
his appointment imder President Garfield, and holding the office con- 
tinuously since then. He was reappointed by Cleveland, because of 
the lack of a competent Democrat. He has also been the agent of the 
Delaware & Hudson Railroad for about the same length of time. 



6 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In politics Mr. demons is an ardent Republican, who has always 
been active and earnest in the support of his party, in which he is 
very prominent. He has held the office of supervisor for the town of 
Dresden for four years; he was town clerk for three years and county 
treasurer for three years. He also takes a warm interest in the Grand 
Army of the Republic and is a member of J. C. Lassen Post No. 642, 
G. A. R., of Dresden Center, which holds its meetings in his hall. 

On February 21, 1867, Mr. demons married Lydia A., daughter of 
Abraham and Clarissa (Bartholomew) Chubb. 



Hon. John Hamilton Derby. — The subject of this sketch com- 
mands particular notice in the annals of such an historic county as 
Washington, for not only has he attained prominence by his own suc- 
cess in life, but his ancestors were men of note from pre-Revolution- 
ary days while his grandfather and great-grandfather were pioneers 
in this country. He is the only son of George F. Derby and Jane F. 
( Howland ) Derby and was born at Sandy Hill June 20, 1845. 

At the age of sixteen he accompanied his father to western New 
York, Ohio and Pennsylvania where his father's business as a railway 
contractor called him. When*located in Meadville, Pa., he met Mar- 
garet F. Stewart, whom he subsequently married September 6, 1870. 
To that union four children have been born, namely: George H., 
who died in infancy, Archibald S., born November 5, 1876, Anna 
Louise, born August 29, 1879, and John H. Derby, Jr., born February 
18, 1886. 

After an absence of twelve years Mr. Derby returned to Sandy Hill 
in 1873 where he has since resided. 

When the firm of Howland & Company was formed to succeed 
Howland & Miller, paper manufacturers, it consisted of Amasa How- 
land, John H. Derby and Lansing M. Howland. In 1882 this firm 
was succeeded by the Howland Paper Company which sold out to the 
Union Bag & Paper Company in 1899. The company manufactured 
an enormous quantity of manilla paper and was said to be one of the 
largest mills of its kind in this country, a prestige the present com- 
pany maintains. 

Mr. Derby was elected one of the first directors of the Union Bag & 
Paper Company when they came into possession of the business and 




C3^?i£^ </^ cZ?^^.-^^, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 7 

this position he still holds, but excepting this he is at present practi- 
cally out of active business operations. 

Besides the very active part which Mr. Derby took in the paper 
business for years he has been also associated with many other enter- 
prises and has always taken a deep and intellig-ent interest in public 
affairs. For more than twenty years he has been a member of the 
Board of Education and is now president of the Board. For three 
successive years he represented the town of Kingsbury on the Board 
of Supervisors and was chairman of that body during the last year of 
his service. 

In politics Mr. Derby is a staunch Republican, whose views have 
always been sought by his party and v/hose voice is respected in its 
councils. In 1892-93 he represented the counties of Washington and 
Rensselaer, the sixteenth senatorial district, in the state senate, hav- 
ing been elected after a very close contest in an apparently Demo- 
cratic district, his opponent being Michael F. Collin of Troy. Besides 
holding these political positions he has also been a delegate to Repub- 
lican state conventions. 

His enterprise and fine business abilities carried him into many 
enterprises that have been highly beneficial to his locality. He was 
one of the organizers and was the president of the Sandy Hill Power 
Company until it was absorbed by the Union Bag & Paper Company. 
He was a director of the Electric Light Company until 1899, when it 
was sold to the United Gas & Light Company, and he is now a direc- 
tor of the Spring Brook Water Company. For years he has been a 
director of the First National Bank of Sandy Hill and when the Glens 
Falls Trust Company was formed he was elected one of its first vice- 
presidents. Mr. Derby is also largely interested in mining operations 
in Colorado. 

Socially Mr. Derby is a charter member of the Royal Arcanum 
Council of Sandy Hill and was for years a member of the Grand 
Council for the state of New York. For years, also, he was one of 
the financial committee of that body. He has been a member and 
communicant of the Presbyterian Church for many years and about 
eight years ago was ordained an elder, the highest honor to which a 
layman can attain in that denomination. He has also taken an active 
part in the business department of the church and was one of the 
board of trustees for years. He was for some time president of the 
board of trustees and is also treasurer of the church. 



8 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Derby's great-grandfather, Benjamin Derby, came from Con- 
necticut shortly after the Revolutionary War, in which he participated. 
George F. Derby, (father of Hon. John H. Derby) was born in Glens 
Falls in 1817. He was a railway contractor, which business Hon. 
John H. Derby also followed for some time. He died in 1873. His 
wife was a sister of Enos and Amasa Howland. They were married 
in 1844 and she died in 187 1. The original Derby in America came 
to Massachusetts from England about the year 1700. 



FoNROSE Farwell. — The subject of this sketch was born at Pond 
Hill, Poultney, Vt., December 22, 1831. His father was a farmer and 
he was reared on the farm, receiving as liberal a public school educa- 
tion as the schools of that day afforded. On the ist of April, 1855, he 
settled in Hampton on Dr. N. 3. S. Beman's farm, and in company 
with his brother conducted that farm for about three years. In 1858 
he hired the Mason Hulett farm and continued to work it until 1866, 
when he purchased it from the heirs of the late Mason Hulett, who 
was one of the early settlers of Hampton. This farm contains 300 
acres and was owned by Mr. Bell before it was owned by Mason 
Hulett. 

Since Mr. Farwell has resided on this farm, which he conducted 
with marked success, he purchased in i88i what is known as the Dyer 
farm, about three-fourths of a mile north, making his estate altogether 
600 acres, which is really one of the finest estates in the town, and the 
buildings he has erected on these farms are among the best in the 
county. 

He is largely interested in manufacturing cider, and has a fine mill, 
with all modern conveniences. He is also one of the best known 
agriculturalists, and was at one time president of the Washington 
County Agricultural Society. 

Mr. Farwell is a prominent Mason and has passed to the order of 
Knights Templar, being a member of Washington Commandery No. 
33, K T., Saratoga Springs. His local lodge is Morning Star No. 37, 
Poultney, Vt., of which he is past master. In politics he is a Republi- 
can and has ever been interested in the success of his party. 

On December 22, 1863, Mr. Farwell married Ida L. Dyer, daughter 
of the late vSamuel E. and Julia A. Dyer, of Rutland, Vt. Mrs. Far- 




; ^if &!^Jl..O^^ t^f/iams 2.B.-a.Ii/y' 



^7S>.eXU,^f^-X- VC^ 



^t^XyHL-^/i^y 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 9 

well's father was born in Rutland, Vt., January 24, 18 14, and married 
Julia A. Arnold October 31, 1839. Julia A. Arnold was born in Clar- 
endon, Vt., December 23, 1818. Mr. Farwell's parents were John G. 
and Lucy Farwell. John G. Farwell was a native of Groton, Mass., 
and was born November 15, 1783, and settled in Poultney, Vt., in De- 
cember, 1798, with his father, Benjamin Farwell, who was a son of 
Daniel Farwell. Lucy (Laraway) Farwell, mother of Fonrose Far- 
well, was a native of Saratoga County, N. Y. , and was born March 9, 
1800, and died July 22, 1863, while living- with her son, Fonrose, in 
Hampton. Her father was a native of the Isle of Jersey, and immi- 
grated to America during the Revolutionary War and settled in Sara- 
toga County. 

Mr. Farwell is erecting a monument in the town of Poultney, dedi- 
cated in "part to the memory of both grandfathers. Philip Laraway, 
the grandfather on the maternal side, enlisted May 3, 1779, in Captain 
Luke Day's Company, 7th Massachusetts Regiment, commanded by 
Lieutenant-Colonel John Brooks, to serve during the war. 

On General Lafayette's last visit to this country he met Mr. Lara- 
way at Sandy Hill, N. Y., and both being of the same nationality and 
having fought together for the same cause, over forty years before, 
the meeting was an affecting one. And his grandfather Farwell 
fought tmder Colonel Prescott at the battle of Bunker Hill on Jime 

17, 1775- 

Mr. Farwell is deserving much credit for the loyalty and respect 
thus shown by him for his ancestors. He is an affable, genial gentle- 
man and has many friends in this and also his native state. 



Adjutant Emmett J. Gray is an excellent example of the citizen 
soldier, for he is not only a prominent and successful business man, 
but has attained the rank of Adjutant of the Second Regiment, Na- 
tional Guard of the state of New York, and this as the result of the 
patriotism and the ability displayed by him on active duty in the 
Spanish-American War. 

He was born in Glens Falls, Warren County, N. Y., December 7, 
1865, and was educated at the Academy and Elmwood Seminary in 
his native town. 

[b] 



10 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

After completing' his education he accepted the position of clerk in 
the large clothing store of the Rochester Clothing Company at Glens 
Falls and remained with them in this capacity for more than two 
years, when he was promoted to the position of manager of the ex- 
tensive store at Rutland, Vt., for the same firm. For nearly three 
years he filled this position with ability and success and in 1890 
resigned to come to Whitehall and form a partnership with the late 
R. M. Witherbee, his father-in-law. For some years they conducted 
a large and lucrative milling business which was discontinued in 1897, 
but Mr. Gray continued his association with Mr. Witherbee in his 
large general store. 

Throughout all his business dealings Adjutant Gray has distin- 
guished himself for honorable methods and strict integrity, as well as 
for ability of a high order. 

On November 26, 1890, Emmett J. Gray married Minnie E., daugh- 
ter of R. M. and Mary L. (McLaughlin) Witherbee and they have a 
family of three children, namely: R. Gerald, Howard E., and Clay- 
ton. 

Adjutant Gray takes a warm interest and an active part in military 
affairs, and legitimately conies by the martial spirit which is probably 
his distinguishing trait, for some of his ancestors were gallant soldiers 
who helped to build up and maintain this great union. 

On February 11, 1884, Mr. Gray became a member of the i8th 
Separate Company of the National Guard of the state of New York at 
Glens Falls. He was made a corporal on June 6, 1885, and was pro- 
moted to the rank of Second Lieutenant Januar\' 2, 1888. On March 
21, 1889, he received a full and honorable discharge from the National 
Guard of this state and on FeVjruary 11, 1890, was commissioned Cap- 
tain of Company A, of the National Guard of the state of Vermont, 
at Rutland, where he then resided. On September 15, 1890, he re- 
signed this commission because of his removal to Whitehall, but at 
once connected himself once more with the National Guard of New 
York, and on October 3, 1893, was made First Lieutenant of the 9th 
Separate Company at Whitehall. Upon the breaking out of the Span- 
ish-American War April 21, 1898, he went out as First Lieutenant of 
Company I, Second Regiment, N. G. N. Y., to uphold the stars and 
stripes. He was with the regiment at Camp Black, Chickamauga, 
Tampa, Fla.. Fernandina, Fla., and Camp Hardin, N. Y., and 
through all the movements and trials of this regiment maintained and 




EMMETT J. GRAY 




GEN. WM. H. HUGHES. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 11 

increased his reputation for soldiery qualities, and his popularity as 
an officer. He was promoted to the rank of Batallion Adjutant June 
15, 1899. 

Adjutant Gray's parents were Enoch and Helen M. (Arnold) Gray. 
Two of his grand-uncles were soldiers in the Revolutionary War, one 
of whom was Sidney Gray; also two of his cousins served in the War 
of the Rebellion and one of them died upon the battlefield. 

In politics Adjutant Gray is a staunch Republican and takes an ac- 
tive interest in the* contests and successes of his party and has been 
trustee of the village of Whitehall for two years. 

He is a member of Phfjenix Lodge, No. 34, F. & A. M., Whitehall, 
and of Tancred Lodge, No. 303, Knights of Pythias. 



General William H. Hughes. — Among the leaders in Washington 
County politics are some young men of more than ordinary- ability. 
Of these it can be said that they have been the instruments of putting 
into office for the past few years men of integrity and ability, who 
have served the county conscientiously and acceptably. 

General William H. Hughes, the subject of this sketch, is generally 
accorded the leadership in Republican politics in the northern part of 
the county, and his ability as a leader is well known in state, as well 
as in local politics. 

William H. Hughes was born at Chapmanville, Pa., September 30, 
1864; his father, Hugh W. Hughes, being at that time engaged in the 
slate business at that place. The Hughes family moved to Granville 
about the time of the great slate boom in this vicinity. Hugh W. 
Hughes soon controlled most of the land where indications of slate 
were apparent and immediately developed the same, with the result 
that he practically controlled the market. 

William H. Hughes received his education in the public schools and 
at the North Granville Military Academy, then an institution of learn- 
ing for young men second to none in the state. At the age of twenty- 
four, and in the year 1888, he formed a copartnership with his father 
in the slate business, under the firm name of Hugh W. Huges & Son. 
This partnership continued imtil the death of the elder Hughes, which 
occurred February 8, 1890. From that time to the present day Wil- 
liam H. Hughes has not only carried on the enormous business sue- 



12 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

cessfully, but he has increased it very considerably, and has won for 
himself the enviable title of " Slate King of America. " His opera- 
tions in slate are so large as to require the employment of an average 
force of 350 men. He has sixteen quarries of sea green slate stretch- 
ing from Pawlet,Vt., to Granville, a distance of about six miles, yet 
all of these quarries are within easy trucking distance of the railroad. 
Mr. Hughes himself is a hard worker, putting in more hours of at- 
tention to business daily than any man in his employ. During the 
panic of the slate business some years ago, when upwards of 800 quar- 
rymen were idle and free soup houses were common in the little vil- 
lage of Granville, Mr. Hiighes kept his men at work getting out slate, 
and although he was acting against the advice of his friends, he piled 
up enormous quantities of slate, and after having made two flying 
trips to England he found a market for his goods, thus turning the 
minds and hearts of the idle working men from helplessness and des- 
pair to employment and gladness. No sooner had he found a market 
for slate than all quarry owners resumed work, so that the result of 
his enterprise was beneficial to his neighbors and their emploj'ees, and 
to the community at large. 

Notwithstanding his large business responsibilities General Hughes 
has found time to render the people service in different public capaci- 
ties. He has been County Treasurer for one term, was President of 
the village of Granville seven years and was one of the promoters and 
is a director of the Granville Telephone Company. He is also a direc- 
tor of the Peoples' National Bank of Salem, N. Y. 

He is also very prominent in social organizations and fraternities, 
and is a member of the Knights of Pythias, of the Odd Fellows, Red 
Men and Elks, and is a very prominent Mason, having past to the 
thirty-second degree Scottish Rite, in which order he is also a member 
of the Mystic Shrine. 

On April 28, 1886, General Hughes married Julia Forte of Albany, 
daughter of John and Mary Forte, formerly residents of Adrian, Mich. 
They have a family of three children, namely: Hugh W., William 
Gordon and Lorrain. 

Personally and socially General Hughes enjoys that popularity which 
is ever the tribute to a genial and cultured gentleman. He is liberal 
not only in his views, but also in his charities, his hand ever obeying 
the best impulses of his generous nature. It is truly said of him that 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 13 

more than half of the young business men of Granville have been 
tided over financial chasms by his advice and substantial aid. 

General Hughes occupied a position on the staff of Frank S. Black, 
when he was Governor of New York State, and he held the position 
of Quartermaster-General during the years 1897-8. 

Hugh W. Hughes was a native of Wales, but came to America in 
1857, and was one of the pioneer quarriers of green slate in this 
country. 



Amasa Howland was not only the founder and guiding genius of 
the great paper industry in Washington County, but has made the 
name Howland honored and respected all over the land. He was 
born in the town of Gal way, Saratoga County, N. Y., June 29, 1827. 
In 1844 his father, Stephen Howland, moved from Galway to Sandy 
Hill, and with his sons built the old paper mill at Baker Falls, the 
first of its kind in the state of New York. In 1852 Stephen Howland 
retired from the paper business and was succeeded by his sons, 
Amasa and Enos. For the succeeding forty-five years Amasa How- 
land was the head and front of the constantly enlarging and expand- 
ing paper interest of Washington County, and to his genius and abili- 
ty is directly attributable the great paper interests which are today 
not only the largest industrial enterprise in Washington Coiinty, but 
contribute vastly to the prosperity of Sandy Hill. 

In 1855 Amasa Howland and his brother Enos disposed of their 
paper interests at Sandy Hill and moved to Fort Ann, where they 
built and operated a mill until 1865, when Mr. Howland sold out his 
interest to his brother, Enos Howland, and returned to Sandy Hill. 
He then associated with himself Dr. Miller and Guy Clark, under the 
name of Howland, Clark & Company, and built one of the immense 
paper mills at Baker Falls. In 1873 Dr. Miller died, and Mr. Clark 
withdrawing from the firm in the same year, Mr. Howland adtnitted 
to partnership John H. Derby and Lansing M. Howland, under the 
name of Howland & Company. For twenty years this firm continued 
the business with almost phenomenal success, due primarily and 
mainly to the business energy and executive ability of Amasa How- 
land. 

On December i, 1893, the firm of Howland & Company was suc- 
ceeded by The Howland Paper Company, of which Amasa Howland 



14 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

was president, J. E. Howland, vice president, John H. Derby, secre- 
tary, and Lansing M. Howland, treasurer. The new company had a 
capital stock of one million dollars. 

In 1899 the Howland Paper Company sold out to the Union Bag & 
Paper Company and Mr. Howland retired from active business life 
after one of the most successful and honorable business careers ever 
carried out in this state by any man. 

Mr. Howland has been twice married. His first wife was Mary L. 
Green, who died in 1864, leaving one child, Mary Louise, who is also 
deceased. He married for his second wife Lydia Groesbeck of Fort 
Ann. They have two sons, James Edward and Frederick D. Howland, 
both of whom were associated with the paper business in conjunction 
with their father, and who are well known and popular gentlemen in 
Sandy Hill and New York. 

The progenitor of the Howland family in America was Henry 
Howland, a Quaker immigrant who came to America in 1625 and 
joined the Plymouth colony along with his brother Arthur. His 
brother John had come over five years previously in the Mayflower. 
Henry Howland's son, Zoeth Howland, was born in Duckbury, Mass., 
and was a devoted Quaker and suffered much oppression on account 
of his religion. He was a member of the Plymouth colony and was 
killed in King Phillip's War in 1676. He had a son, Henry Howland, 
whose son, Stephen Howland, was the great-grandfather of Amasa 
Howland. He moved to Dutchess County, N. Y., where his son, 
Stephen Howland, was born, but removed to Saratoga County and 
became one of the first settlers in the town of Galway. One of his 
children, Stephen, was born in Dutchess County, May 29, 1793. He 
married Susan McOmber in 181 2 and they had a family of eleven 
children, one of whom was Amasa Howland, the subject of this 
sketch. From Henry Howland, the founder of the family in Ameri- 
ca, to Amasa Howland, who has distinguished the name, all of the 
Howlands have been Quakers, but as might be expected from his 
progressiveness and mental vigor in other things, Mr. Howland is 
liberal in his religious views. His father, Stephen Howland, the 
pioneer of the paper business in northern New York, died in 1862, 
and his mother, who was a pious and devoted Friend, died in 1879. 




^ 



"^1^^^^ 







BIOGRAPHICAL. 15 

Captain Hiram Hyde was born in Nova Scotia, March i8, 1846, but 
his parents were Americans and his birth occurred while they were on 
a visit to relatives in that province. He was educated in the public 
schools of Sandy Hill and at the early age of fifteen enlisted as a 
soldier in the War of the Rebellion. On December 16, 1861, he be- 
came a member of Company E, 96th New York Volunteer Infantry, 
and served throughout the entire war, receiving his honorable dis- 
charge in February, 1866. 

After the war he returned home and engaged in the business of car- 
penter, which he has since pursued, although he has been prominently 
connected with the Champlain Canal since 1898, in which year he was 
appointed Superintendent of Section No. 2. 

In September, 1868, Captain Hyde married Josephine Gates, by 
whom he had two children. Delia and LeRoy Hyde. Josephine Hyde 
died in 1882 and in November, 1884, Captain Hyde married Kittie 
Jackson, daughter of Jonathan L. and Susan (Howard) Jackson, of 
Saratoga County, N. Y. 

Captain Hyde has a pleasant home on Moss street, in the suburbs 
of Sandy Hill, which is charmingly presided over by his accomplished 
wife, and where he spends his leisure hotirs, being no club man, al- 
though a member of Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M., and also 
of William M. Collin Post No. 587, G. A. R. His long and meritori- 
ous service in the Federal army has given him a special interest in 
military affairs, and he takes an active part in the post and local mili- 
tary affairs. During the Rebellion he participated with his regiment 
in the following battles : 

Yorktown, Va. , April 17th and Ma}' 4, 1862 ; Williamsburg, Va. , May 
5, 1862; Seven Pines, May 29, 1862; Fair Oaks, May 31, 1862; the 
Seven Days' battle, June 26th to July 2, 1862; Malvern Hill and 
Charles City Cross Roads, in July, 1862; Kingston, N. C, December 14, 
1862; Whitehall, N. C, Decemberi6, 1862; Goldsboro, N. C, Decem- 
ber 17, 1862; Swift Creek and Little Washington, N. C, Febiuary, 
1863; Drury's Bluff, Va. , May 14, 1864; Cold Harbor, June ist and 
12, 1864; Petersburg, June 15th and 19, 1864; Chapin's Farm, Sep- 
tember 29th to October i, 1864; Fair Oaks, October 27th to 29, 1864; 
Fall of Petersburg, Va. , April 2, 1865, and many other lesser 
engagements. 

In January, 1864, he re-enlisted, having served the full time of his 
first enlistment. He was wounded in the breast by a shell at Peters- 



16 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

burg, Va. , June i8, 1864, and after being treated in the field hospital 
was sent to the Hampton Hospital, Fortress Monroe. He returned 
to his regiment in September, 1864, and served with it until honorably- 
discharged at City Point, Va., February 6, 1866. He was mustered 
into William M. Collin Post No. 587, G. A. R., Department of New 
York, April 14, 1886, and served as Commander for the year 1895. At 
Kingston, N. C, December 14, 1862, he had his drum shot to pieces, 
when Colonel Charles O. Gray was killed while leading his regiment 
in an assault on the Rebel lines. At Fort Harrison, Va. , September, 
1864, he had the stock of his musket torn off by a shell, which instantly- 
killed Frank Begs, a fifer in his own coinpany, who was by his side. 

There are few men in America today who have an American ances- 
try to be compared to Captain Hyde's. His parents were Daniel M. 
and Lucy J. (Follett) Hyde. James Hyde, his great grandfather, was 
an ensign in the Revolutionary War, and this fact was engraved upon 
his tombstone by Ensign Hyde himself, which stone he made, carved 
and lettered before his death. He is buried in a country cemetery 
near his old home in Stafford, Vt. 

In July, 181 2, when Gen. Hull so disgracefully surrendered to the 
British at Detroit, his men were taken to Kingston, Ontario. Among 
the number was Captain Hyde's uncle, Horace Kimball, and two com- 
rades, who, after remaining there a few weeks, decided to make their 
escape, preferring to drown rather than remain prisoners of war 
imder such mortifying and chagrining circumstances, considering the 
uncalled for surrender of their former General. 

So, one night, when not very dark and the waters apparently still 
and smooth, the three took off their clothes, tied them and their shoes 
into bundles, which they bound safely upon their backs and pro- 
ceeded to swim across that part of Lake Ontario from Kingston to 
Long Island, ( called also Wolfe's Island ) a distance of over two 
miles. Before reaching their destination one of the comrades per- 
ished through exhaustion, and the others were discouraged and 
almost exhausted when they began to feel the sand tmder their feet 
and soon waded ashore. They then put on their clothes, but were so 
chilled that they cut switches and whipped each other till they drew 
the blood to regain their warmth. Afterwards they walked across 
the island, about six miles, and at daybreak found a rowboat which 
they used to carry them across to New York State. 

On his mother's side Captain Hyde's ancestors were identified with 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 17 

those early, terrible days of our country's history of which Washing-- 
ton County had its share. His grandmother Follett's uncle. Captain 
Josiah Joslin, served in the Revolutionary War. He settled in the 
southern part of New Hampshire, near the Connecticut River, where 
he owned a large tract of land. He, with his wife, five children and 
sister-in-law, comprised the family. One day while Captain Joslin 
and his hired men were eating dinner his elder children came in from 
the barn where they were at play and told their father that they saw 
black folks (Indians) behind the flax. He said to his children: " It 
is only your imagination." About an hour after Captain Joslin and 
his men had gone back to the hay field. Mrs. Joslin was cleaning out 
her brick oven when an Indian stepped inside the door, caught up her 
year old babe that was sitting on the floor, took it by the feet and 
dashed its brains out against the fireplace in presence of its mother, 
who fought the Indians with her broom. At the same time other In- 
dians rushed in and killed the rest of the children. They then killed 
Mrs. Joslin, and taking a feather bed, cut it open and emptied the 
feathers over the dead bodies. The body of the baby they placed in 
the path near the house. They then ransacked the house and each 
taking turns would put on the Captain's military uniform and parade 
around the room saying " Now I be Captain Joslin." The sister of 
Mrs. Joslin was hidden under a large cask, but was found and told 
that they had intended to kill her and carry off Mrs. Joslin a captive 
because "she was so big and handsome," they said, "but she fight so 
we kill her and take you captive instead," and they started off with 
her at once. 

Later in the afternoon Captain Joslin came from the field for water 
and the first he saw of his family was the murdered babe which 
caused him to think of what his children had told him at dinner. As 
he went to the house he beheld the terrible sight of the massacre, his 
wife not dead but unconscious. The Captain was so shocked and 
stricken with grief that he lay helpless until his men came from the 
field at night. The men went for neighbors at a distance to prepare 
the bodies for burial. The sister-in-law traveled three days with the 
Indians before they reached their camp. She was obliged to cook 
and do the general work for the old chief and two others; they would 
go away for a day or two at a time, but some one was always left to 
watch her. They would often bring home firewater and get drunk. 

[c] 



18 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

One night, about sundown, they came back after an absence of three 
days; they had been drinking as usual and they compelled her to 
drink, as they supposed, but she would let it run down inside of her 
dress waist instead. Finally they became dead drunk and fell asleep, 
when she took a sharp hatchet and cut the throats of three of the 
assassins of the wigwam. She then took some dry venison and bread 
as well as a bow and arrows, also her blanket, and started on a fast 
walk and traveled the entire night until daylight. She had learned 
many of their ways, also to use a bow and arrow and how to tell the 
points of the compass. She rested in the hollow of a large log the 
first day ; the next day at dark she came to a clearing and saw a light 
in the distance which she feared might be another Indian camp, yet 
she ventured on until, to her joy, she found it to be the log house of 
some settlers. vShe knocked at the door and aroused them. They 
took her in and she related to them her experience and they provided 
for her and sought in every way to comfort her, her feet being frozen. 
She remained with them for two weeks, when they took her on their 
only conveyance, an ox sled, to Captain Joslin, a distance of sixteen 
miles. 

From this narrative and these incidents it will be seen that Captain 
Hyde's ancestors endured their share of the hardships and miseries 
which the pioneers of this now great countr}' suffered and also that 
some of them did their share in founding this vast Republic, which he 
himself, nobly fought to maintain in that most sanguinary of all wars 
— the Rebellion of 1861 to 1865. 



Frederick. E. Hill. — The subject of this biography, who was one 
of the best known and most prominent men of his day in Washington 
County, was born in the town of Easton, this county, April 14, 1839. 
His father was a farmer, and until the age of eighteen he worked on 
the farm and received a common school education at the district 
school. In 1856 he accepted the position of salesman in a mercantile 
house, but in a few years embarked in business for himself in the vil- 
lage of Easton, where he carried on a successful trade until 1880, in 
which year he entered the public life of Washington County, by be- 
coming under sheriff with his brother, James Hill, who had been 
elected sheriff of the county in the preceding year. After his term 




'^^^^^^^ ^-^a^^^-f/ ^^/ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 19 

as under sheriff had expired Mr. Hill re-entered the mercantile busi- 
ness with Andrew J. Haggart at Salem, but in 1895 he withdrew from 
the concern and again became under sheriff, this time tinder George 
L. Marshall, and so continued during Mr. Marshall's term of office. 
At the fall election in 1888 Mr. Hill was himself elected sheriff of the 
county, as the regular nominee of his party, and discharged the duties 
of his office to the entire satisfaction of the county. Both as sheriff 
and under sheriff he was an ideal officer, and today there is no part of 
the county in which his name is not mentioned with the highest re- 
spect and kindliest remembrance. In 1892 his term of office as sheriff 
having expired, Mr. Hill opened a meat market in Salem, which he 
conducted successfully up to the time of his death, which occurred 
July 25, 1894. 

In the year 1861 Frederick E. Hill married Sarah Rundell, daughter 
of Jarvis Rundell, of the town of Cambridge. They have two chil- 
dren living, namely: Frank A. and Fr^d R. Hill. 

Mr. Hill was an honored member of the Masonic fraternity, and 
affiliated with Cambridge Valley. Lodge No. 401, F. & A. M. He was 
prominent in Republican councils and in the affairs of Washington 
County, and was a trustee and liberal supporter of the Presbyterian 
Church. 

His parents were Enoch and Anna (Monroe) Hill. 



L. Jane Hawlev, daughter of Colonel Bethel Mather and Huldah 
(Smith) Mather, has resided in Salem since the year 1848, in which 
year, on February i6th, she became the wife of the late David Haw- 
ley. They had two sons, Joseph Mather Hawley, born in 1856, and 
Charles D. Hawley, born in 1858. 

Joseph Mather Hawley graduated from Amherst College in June, 
1875. He married Nellie Smart and is now a merchant residing in 
Syracuse, N. Y. Charles D. Hawley married Isabella Hinds and is a 
resident of Berlin, Wisconsin. 

Mrs. Hawley's father. Colonel Bethel Mather, was descended from 
Atherton Mather, one of the five distinguished Mather brothers, who 
were so prominent in the early history of Massachusetts. Colonel 
Mather was a native of Torrington, Litchfield county, Connecticut, 
and had for his pastor the Rev. Samuel J. Mills, father of the first 



20 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

missionary in Washington County. Mrs. Hawley's grandfather, on 
her mother's side, was Elijah Smith, cousin of John Cotton Smith, one 
of the Governors of New York State. 

David Hawley was born in the village of Salem, Washington County, 
N. Y., March 9, 1809. He was the only son (having one sister, Mrs. 
Alonzo Gray of Salem) of Joseph Hawley and Sally Gray, the former 
a native of Bridgeport, Conn., and came to this county while a young 
man, spent his life as a merchant in Salem, and died in the year 1858, 
aged eighty-three years. The latter was a native of Camden, town of 
Salem, and died in the year 1856. His grandfather's name was Wol- 
cott Hawley, from Bridgeport, Conn. 

David Hawley's early life, until he was sixteen, was spent at home 
and as a student in Washington Academy, at Salem, where he received 
such cultivation of intellect as gave him ready ability to enter upon a 
clerkship in his father's store, where he remained until he was nine- 
teen, when his father gave up lousiness, and the son formed a partner- 
ship with his brother-in-law, Mr. Alonzo Gray, which continued for a 
time ; he then carried on the business alone, successfully, until the year 
1838, when his health became somewhat impaired, and he spent the 
following ten years traveling in different parts of the United States. 

In the year 1830, May 25, he married Miss Katharine Matilda, 
daughter of the late Major James Harvey, of Salem. She was born 
July II, 1 81 3, and died at the age of twenty-three, leaving an only 
daughter, Mrs. Rev. J. K. McLean, of Oakland, California. After the 
death of his wife, Mr. Hawley retired from business, and resided else- 
where for several years, first in Greenwich and then in Schaghticoke. 

After Mr. Hawley's second marriage he returned to Salem, and 
soon after entered into the grain and commission business in partner- 
ship with Mr. Cyrus Atwood, which continued until his partner's de- 
mise, after which he carried on the business alone, until nearly 
the time of his death, February 5, 1874. 

In January, 1859, he was elected a trustee of the First Presbyterian 
Church, filling the vacancy occasioned by the death of his father. Ten 
years later he became one of the directors of the National Bank of 
Salem, both of which positions he continued to hold by successive 
re-elections until his death. Mr. Hawley was a man of activity in 
business, a warm friend to the deserving needy, and many whom he 
befriended will cherish his name in grateful remembrance. He pos- 




JOHN MAIN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 21 

sessed fixed integrity of purpose in all his business transactions, and 
was honored and esteemed by all who knew him. 

He was never solicitous of any public notoriety by way of political 
preferment ; neither did he shrink from bearing his duties as a citizen, 
and was an unswerving member of the Republican party. Socially 
he was the attractive center, not only of his family, but of the business 
community, and his pleasant words cheered the mind of many a de- 
spondent and suffering one. While a young man Mr. Hawley was 
interested in military matters, and was paymaster on the staff of Gen- 
eral McNaughton, in the Sixtenth Brigade, Tenth Division, New York 
State Militia. 

Mrs. Hawley still resides in the old homestead on Main street, 
Salem. 



John Main was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washington county, 
N. Y., September 20, 1836, and was educated in his native village. 
His first employment was that of boat driver on the canal, which oc- 
cupation he pursued for one year, when he was promoted to steersman, 
and soon rose to the position of captain. He ran boats of his own 
until 1880, when he abandoned the canal and went to New York and 
was engaged in the truck business for fifteen years, after which he 
came to Fort Ann and embarked in the hotel business, in which he is 
still engaged. 

In January, 1858, John Main married Mary E. McKinney, who died 
in 1878, leaving five children, namely: Victor W., Frances L., Wilson 
M., John H., and Estella. 

In May, 1894, Mr. Main married Mrs. Sarah Southerland. Mr. 
Main's parents were Patrick and Ann (Hopper) Main. 

John Main takes an active interest in the public affairs of Fort Ann, 
and has held the office of town collector and is now president of the 
village of Fort Ann; he has also held other offices. 

Fraternally he is a member of the Masonic Order, Mount Hope 
Lodge No. 206, F. & A. M., located at Fort Ann. 

His hotel, the Sheldon House, is the only one in the village, but is 
admirably conducted, and Mr. Main is highly popular with the public 
at large, as well as with the people of his own tov/n and county. 

Mr. Main's family is of Irish descent, and the first representative 
of the Mains in the United States came to Fort Ann in 1834, via 
Quebec, Canada. 



22 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Henry V. Middleworth, who was one of the most prominent busi- 
ness men of his day in Washington County, was born in the town of 
Greenwich, Washington County, N. Y., December 7, 1813. During- 
his early life he learned the trade of wagon manufacturer, and in 
1 83 1, he established himself in this business and started a' wagon 
shop. 

After continuing in the wagon-making business for some time, he 
abandoned his trade and began purchasing land in Washington Coun- 
ty and erected buildings thereon. His operations in Sandy Hill, in 
this line, were qiiite extensive, and he did a great deal towards the 
building up and improvement of this town in his day. He built the 
well known Middleworth House, which is even yet one of the most 
prominent blocks in Sandy Hill, and besides this, he put up several 
other permanent and important buildings. He opened up River 
street in Sandy Hill and also laid out Walnut street and gave it to 
the village. He erected a fine summer residence for himself on Lake 
George, and also a hotel on the west shore of the lake long known as 
Agawam. 

In 1838, Mr. Middleworth married Orril Bliss, of Massachusetts. 
They have two children who are both living today, namely: Ella 
Josephine and Warren H. Middleworth. 

Henry V. Middleworth died November 12, 1887. His wife was 
born March 12, 1810, and died May 26, 1891. 

Ella Josephine Middleworth married Frederick C. Burdick, October 
25, 1859. Mr. Burdick died in 1862, and on April 16, 1867, she mar- 
ried Burton C. Dennis, who died October 23, 1890. 

Mrs. Dennis had one son, Fred M. Dennis, who was born February 
21, 1874, and died June 26, 1881. 

Her mother was a member of the M. E. Church and her father was 
a liberal supporter of all churches. 



Charles S. North up was born in the town of Hartford, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., July 10, 1875, and received his preliminary edu- 
cation in the district schools of his native place. He then attended 
the North Granville military academy for one year and was Captain 
of a company while there. He completed his education at the Sandy 
Hill high school, where he took a three year course. 




CHARLES S. NORTHUP. 




r.^^^/*^'"' 





BIOGRAPHICAL. 23 

After leaving school Mr. Northup engaged in the real estate busi- 
ness with his father, the late James M. Northup. Subsequently, on 
April I, 1899, he started in business at Hartford, N. Y., with B. W. 
Arnold, under the firm name of Arnold & Northup, but on February 
22, 1900, the firm dissolved and Mr. Northup has since conducted 
the business alone. His store is 25x50 feet and comprises two floors. 
He carries on a general inerchandise business and is both popular and 
successful. 

Oia August 21, 1895, Mr. Northup married Josie, daughter of Wil- 
liam N. and Ida E. Warren, and they have one daughter, Harriette 
Northup, born May 31, 1897. Mr. Northup's parents were Hon. 
James M. and Harriet D. (Sill) Northup. 

The Northup family is one of the oldest, best known and most 
highly respected in Washington County and is of English descent. 

Mr. C, S. Northup is a Republican in politics and is always active 
and consistent in the support of his party. 



Hon. James M. Northup. — It is doubtful if the town of Hartford 
has ever had a citizen to whom it owes as much as to the late James 
M. Northup — indeed he has been the man of this century in that 
town — and Hartford has had her share of worthy men. Mr. Northup 
was a very successful man in many ways, and yet he differed from 
most successful men in one great and important particular, his suc- 
cess was directly reflected upon the community in which he resided. 
Others were successful because of his success, others enjoyed more 
than they would ever have enjoyed, but for his success. Greater 
tribute than this can be accorded to no man, for greater success than 
this is not attainable. 

Mr. Northup was a native of New York State and was born in Platts- 
burgh, October 8, 1820. His parents were John S. and Laura (Baker) 
Northup, and his education was such as the public schools of the early 
part of the century afforded. Yet his school days were brief, for he 
commenced the battle of life for himself at the early age of fifteen, 
working as a farm hand. But notwithstanding his restricted opportu- 
nities he developed into a broad minded, sterling, enterprising and 
notably successful man. In 1842 he married Julia A. Davis of Hart- 
ford, and assumed charge of her mother's farm. vShortly after this he 



24 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

beg-an to speculate in farm produce, making- a specialty of potatoes, 
for which crop Washington County was at that day already famous. 
In this branch of business his strong and active mind found a con- 
genial field, and his operations were so successful that he soon became 
the largest dealer in northern New York, in which he was also the 
pioneer potato dealer. Referring to this part of his career, an old 
resident of Hartford has said, "at that time Mr. Northup was the 
salvation of the town;" and it is a well authenticated fact that some 
years his purchases reached the enormous amount of half a million 
bushels of potatos, which he shipped to New York city. It was in the 
produce business that he laid the foundation of his successful business 
life, as well as of his large estate. 

In later years Mr. Northup became interested in banking and was 
for ten years president of the First National Bank of Fort Edward, a 
position he held up to the day of his death. 

His large business interests naturally occupied his mind to an extent 
that precluded an extended political career, yet in the field of local 
politics he was always a strong factor, and held several important 
public offices, all of which he filled with the honest zeal and success 
that characterized his business career. He was supervisor of the town 
of Hartford in 1856 and 1857, and in 1858 he represented Washington 
County in the State Legislature. He was elected and re-elected 
County Treasurer for six successive years, namely: from 1872 to 1878, 
and was one of the Excise Commissioners of the county for six years. 

In his social and private life Mr. Northup was an exemplary man. 
He was wisely charitable and broadly generous, and won not only the 
respect and confidence, but also the warm regard of all who knew 
him. For many years previous to his death he was a member of the 
Baptist Church at Hartford, and its largest contributor. He took great 
interest in the new church building, erected a few j^ears ago, and pre- 
sented to the church the bell which shall long remind the worshipers 
of the good man who was once among them. He also contributed 
$1,000 to the building fund. 

Mr. Northup's first wife, Julia A. Davis, died in May, 1850, and in 
1851 he married Martha Dunham of Argyle, who died in 1867. In 
187 1 he married Harriet D. Sill of Hartford, who died in Jime, 1889. 
Two sons survive him, namely, H. Davis Northup of Fort Edward, 
son of his first wife, and Charles S. Northup, son of his third wife. 

Mr. Northup died October 20th, 1899. 





^^i-^-t^lL^-c^ 




BIOGRAPHICAL. 25 

H. Davis Northup, one of the leading business men of Fort Ed- 
ward, was born at Hartford, Washington County, N. Y., October 9, 
1842, and was educated at the Fort Edward Institute. At the age of 
eighteen he engaged in the produce business with his father, the late 
James M. Northup, operating along the Champlain Canal. Three 
years later, when of age, he succeeded to the entire business, and sub- 
sequently formed a partnership with his uncle, W. B. Northup. In 
all, he was engaged in the produce business for a period of twenty-two 
years. 

While still in this branch of trade Mr. Northup became a member 
of the house of Davis & Compan}^, shirt and collar manufacturers, of 
Troy, N. Y. ; subsequently operating at Fort Edward, also. He re- 
mained in this company until 1890, when he became secretary of the 
Automatic Tap & Faucet Company, of Fort Edward, in which he was 
a stockholder, and which company still exists. He is also a partner 
in the F. E. Hicks Manufacturing Company, which makes tinware 
and milk patents. 

In politics Mr. Northup has always been a staunch Republican and 
has held several important public offices. He served for six years as 
Deputy County Treasurer, under his father, and subsequently was 
himself elected County Treasurer, and re-elected at the expiration of 
his term, filling that responsible office for two full terms. He was 
Village Treasurer of Fort Edward during 1898, and has also been 
Republican County Committeeman on many occasions, as w^ell as a reg- 
ular delegate for years. His one social organization is the Masonic, 
in which he has passed to the degree of Knight Templar. He is a 
member of Herschell Lodge No. 508, Fort Edward, of the Hartford 
Chapter No. 192, and of Washington Commandery No. ^^, Saratoga; 
also Jane McCrea Lodge of Odd Fellows, Fort Edward. 

In January, 1864, Mr. Northup married Parmelia E. Wait, daughter 
of Mansur K. Wait, of Granville. She died in January, 1879, leaving 
three children, namely: James M. Northup, for some time Under 
Sheriff of Washington County; Mansur W. Northup, in Comptroller's 
Office of Delaware & Hudson Railroad Company, New York; and 
Maud E., now Mrs. Wilfred J. De Wolfe, of New York City. 

On September 10, 1885, Mr. Northup married Kate J. Hopping, of 
New York City. 

The Northup family is an old and honored American line. Some of 



26 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Northup's ancestors aided in founding the Union, his great grand- 
father, Joseph Northup, having served as a Sergeant tinder Colonel 
Schuyler during the Revolutionary War. His grandfather, John S. 
Northup was a drummer in the War of 1812, and came with his father 
into Washington County ainong the early pioneers, settling in the 
town of Hebron. The original Northup in America was one of the 
early immigrants to this country from England, and was one of the 
pioneers of New England. 

Mr. H. Davis Northup is a courteous and affable gentleman, while 
at the same time he is an energetic and successful business man. He 
is a typical representative of the Northup family, embodying the 
business abilities that have made its members prosperous, and the ster- 
ling qualities that have ever won respect and confidence. 



Henry S. Root, who died in Fort Ann, in November, 1896, was 
born in Fort Ann, December 14, 1814, and was a descendant from a 
family of distinction, his father, Asa Root, having served with honor 
in the War of 181 2. Asa Root was also a native of Fort Ann, so that 
the family has been identified with this town for over a century. 

On October 19, 1853, Mr. Root married Jane Murrell, of Hartford, 
and from that day until the time of his death was a prominent and 
highly respected farmer in the town of Fort Ann. 

He was a staunch Democrat, highly respected by his party and was 
justice of the peace in the town of Fort Ann for several years. 

Mr. and Mrs. Root had one daughter, Hattie Root, who married 
Captain Charles Curtis of Fort Ann. Mrs. Root's parents were Hiram 
and Rhoda ( Winegar ) Murrell. Her grandfather ( William ) was an 
English soldier in the Revolutionary War. 

Her father was born in England and came to the United States 
during the Revolutionary War. He married Sarah Williams, a niece 
of Roger Williams. He was always a farmer, and his father was a 
harness maker and farmer. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 27 

Jerome Bonaparte Rice. — The subject of this sketch, who is not 
only one of the best known business men in northern New York, buf 
has a distinguished record as a soldier who. fought for the cause of his 
country, was born in the town of Salem, N. Y., July 19, 1841, and 
received his education in the district schools and at the Albany Busi- 
ness College, from which he was graduated at the age of nineteen. 
When the Civil War broke out he was working on his father's farm in 
the town of Jackson, Washington County, and with that promptness 
and ardor which has distinguished his whole career he resolved to 
champion his country's cause and so enlisted from White Creek, N. 
Y., August 8, 1862, as a private, and was mustered into the service at 
Salem, N. Y., September 4, 1862, as First Sergeant of Company G, 
123d Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, to serve for a term of 
three years. On May 21, 1863, he was promoted to Second Lieu- 
tenant, to rank from February 16, 1863. He was taken prisoner at 
Chancellorsville, Va., May 3, 1863, and confined in Libby and Belle 
Isle prison for four weeks, when he was paroled. He was subsequently 
exchanged September 15, 1863. On August i, 1864, he was trans- 
ferred to the signal corps and did duty in the Department of the Cum- 
berland under General Thomas until the close of the war. He was 
honorably discharged and mustered out at Albany, N. Y., June 27, 
1865. 

The 123d Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, left the state 
September 5, 1862, under the command of Colonel A. L. McDougall, 
and served in the First Brigade, First Division, 12th and 20th Army 
Corps, and participated in the following battles: Chancellorsville, Va., 
May 1-3, 1863; Gettysburg, Pa., July 2-3, 1863; Resaca, Ga., May 
14-15, 1864; Cassville, Ga., May 19-20, 1864; Dallas, Ga., May 25 to 
June 4, 1864; Kenesaw Mountain, June 9 to July 2, 1864; Gulp's Farm, 
Ga., June 22, 1864; Peach Tree Creek, Ga. , July 20, 1864; Siege of 
Atlanta, Ga., July 21 to August 26, 1864; Sherman's March to the Sea, 
November 15 to December 10, 1864; Savannah, Ga., December 10-21, 
1864; Campaign in the Carolinas, January 26 to April 26, 1865 ; Averys- 
boro, N. C, March 16, 1865; Aikens Creek, N. C, April 10, 1865; 
Bennett House, N. C, April 26, 1865, and many other skirmishes. 
The regiment was mustered out near Washington, D. C, June 8, 
1865. 

Mr. Rice has just reason to be proud of his record as a soldier. 
From the very first his regiment was put where the fight was the 



28 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

hottest, and the Rebels practically on all sides of them. His regiment 
always rendered a g-ood account of itself, and Lieutenant Rice, an 
intrepid and brave soldier, was always at the head of his men. 

After receiving his honorable discharge he returned home and 
worked on the seed farm with his father. In 1866 he bought out his 
father's interest in the seed business and continued on the farm for 
two years. During this time, and for a few years afterwards, he was 
his own sole salesman, traveling with a horse and carriage from town 
to town. 

In 1868 he moved his business to Cambridge occupying the second 
story of the old steam mill building on Main street where he con- 
ducted business successfully for eleven years. During this time he 
admitted his father again into partnership w^hich continued until 
the latters death in 1895. 

In 1879 Mr. Rice completed his present large warehouse and moved 
his business into its new quarters. This building is located on the 
Robert Blair lands facing on Main street. It is not only commodious 
and admirably adapted to the business for which it is used, but is a 
handsome structure architecturally and its appearance is enhanced by 
a spacious lawn comprising two acres of ground spreading in front of 
it. 

In 1886 this business was incorporated under the firm name and 
style of Jerome B. Rice & Company. From time to time it was found 
necessary to add new buildings to meet the requirements of a rapidly 
expanding business and in 1895 a fine office building was erected 
where twenty-five bookkeepers and stenographers are employed. 
From the modest beginning, already mentioned, this business has 
grown under the able management of Mr. Rice until now over twenty 
traveling salesmen are representatives throughout the country and 
seeds from this establishment are sold in every state and territory in 
the Union, w^hile two hundred men and women are emplo3'ed in the 
packing and sorting rooms. 

The company has a branch house at Detroit, Mich., where one hun- 
dred and fifty hands are employed, and at Wellington, Ontario, they 
have another large and flourishing branch. The Detroit branch was 
founded about six years ago and now over sixteen hundred farmers 
are engaged around the Great Lakes to supply its wants. In addition 
to the seeds which are obtained from almost every state in the Union 
large quantities are imported from European countries. The company 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 29 

handles over one hundred thousand bushels of garden beans and peas 
annuall}"; six thousand five hundred bushels of peas (thirteen car- 
loads ) of one variety were used as seed stock by this firm in the year 
1899. The amount of peas and beans handled by the company is 
greater than that handled by any other company in the world. They 
do an annual business of over five hundred thousand dollars; handle 
all kinds of vegetable and flower seed known to the trade and their 
plant is the most complete in the United States, if not in the world. 

This industry is of great value to Cambridge because of the large 
number of men and women to which it furnishes employment where 
no other staple industry exists or has ever existed. Mr. Rice employs 
home people and even his traveling men are Cambridge boys. 

In other ways Mr. Rice is an invaluable factor in the commercial 
life of his town. When the Lauderdale Agricultural Fair showed 
clear signs of discontinuance, he at once organized a stock company, 
now called the Cambridge Valley Agricultural Society and Stock 
Breeding Association, which annually holds an immensely successful 
fair. The first of its fairs was held in 1890, with Mr. Rice as Presi- 
dent. For ten consecutive years he has been elected President of the 
Association, and in that capacity he has personally interested himself 
in the welfare of the enterprise. As the result it pays more cash pre- 
miums than any fair in the state of New York, excepting the State 
Fair, and is generally on a par with that. 

Mr. Rice for many years was a promoter of the Cambridge Fire De- 
partment and through his efforts "The Old Tub " went to several 
conventions and won many prizes. He was fire chief for several years 
and served with great credit. 

In 1898 he was the unanimous choice of the American Seed Trade 
Association for its president. He is president and was an organizer 
of the Electric City Bank at Niagara Falls, which has a capital stock 
of $75,000 and was established in 1893. 

During the war Mr. Rice incurred from exposure a severe case of 
rheum^atism, which increased as the years went by, and for months at 
a time he was unable to attend to business. The disease continued 
in spite of all medical skill and for years he has been wheeled about 
in a chair. This condition renders his great business achievements 
all the more remarkable, yet his mental energy has never flagged, 
but, indeed, has developed as the demands upon it were increased, so 
that he continually performs an amount of work that few physically 



30 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

sound men would be equal to. Both socially and in a business way 
Mr. Rice is a genial, courteous gentleman and is universally liked. A 
caller, or a guest, soon forgets his physical infirmity, because of his 
personal magnetism, his mental vigor and hospitable manners. 

In 1877 Mr. Rice married Laura Jackson Chandler, a native of West 
Granville, N. Y., and daughter of Edgar D. and Sarah (Everts) 
Chandler. Jesse Averill, her grandfather on her father's side, was a 
private under Captain Brunson and Colonel Clark Warner in a Vermont 
regiment during the Revolutionary War. 

Mr. Rice's father was Roswell Niles Rice, who married Betsey Ann 
Hodges. R. Niles Rice was a son of Daniel and Zina (Kidder) Rice. 
Daniel Rice was a son of Thomas and Thankful (Eldridge) Rice. 
Thomas Rice was a Revolutionary soldier. The Rices are of English 
descent. The children of Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Rice are Jerome B. 
Rice, Jr., C. Evelyn, L. Josephine, Marguerite H. and S. Albertine. 
The last named died in 1889, aged ten years. 

R. Niles Rice's children are as follows: H. Josephine, born Septem- 
ber 15, 1845, wife of Henry B. Wilcox, of Rochester, N. Y. ; James 
H., born October 31, 1843, a stockholder and traveling salesman for 
the seed firm; Marietta H., born December 11, 1847, wife of Dr. A. 
S. Newcomb, of New York city; Albertine, born October 9, 1853, wife 
of E. J. Fuller, of Cambridge, N. Y. ; Anna G. (deceased) wife of 
Frederick M. Becker, of Troy, N. Y. ; Mrs. Becker died December 
30, 1893; Jerome B., born July 19, 1841. 

Mr. Rice is a member of Cambridge Valley Lodge No. 481, F. & A. 
M. ; also of John McKie Post No. 309, G. A. R., and is President of 
the Board of Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



Hon. O. W. Sheldon. — The subject of this sketch, who is not only 
one of the most prominent citizens of Washington County, but who 
has achieved a career both high and honorable, was born in the neigh- 
boring county of Warren, town of Oueensbury, September 2, 1828. 
In 1832 his parents moved to Fort Ann and here he received his edu- 
cation in the common schools. Early in life he engaged in the canal 
boat business, in which he continued until 1862, when he embarked 
in the lumber business, which he still conducts. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 31 

From the very outset he was successful in all his business opera- 
tions, so that shortly after the war he was enabled to give part of his 
attention to banking and financial matters generally, and he is today 
a factor in financial circles, not only in Washington county, but in 
New York city and the state of Kansas. He was for some years Pres- 
ident of the Bank of John Hall & Company, and has been for years 
President of the Smith County National Bank of Smith Center, 
Kansas. 

In politics Mr. Sheldon has always been a consistent Democrat and 
first became actively identified with the public life of his party in 
1872, when he was elected Supervisor of the town of Fort Ann, an 
office to which he was re-elected in the years 1873, 1877, 1878, 1879 
and 1887. In this office he attracted the attention of all citizens of 
Washington County by the ability and honesty with which he dis- 
charged the duties of his office, and he became popular with the Re- 
publicans as well as Democrats. In 1887 the Democrats nominated 
him for Member of Assembly, and although Washington County has 
become proverbial for its huge Republican majorities, so great was 
his popularity with the people at large, that he was elected, although 
the other candidates on the Democratic ticket were defeated by about 
3,000 votes. His career in the State Assembly was highly creditable, 
yet he declined a renomination and withdrew from politics, to a great 
extent, feeling that his large business interests demanded his undi- 
vided attention, yet in any political emergency, and indeed at all 
times, he is always ready to do all in his power for the interest of 
his party. 

On March 19, 1850, Mr. Sheldon married Esther B. Broughton, 
daughter of Amos Broughton of Fort Ann. They have two children, 
Albert U. and Helen M. The progenitor of the Sheldon family in 
America came from England and settled in Delaware County, N. Y. 
He had a son born in Delaware County, who came to Fort Ann in his 
youth, and lived and died in this town. He served in the War of 1812 
against England. His son, Uriah Sheldon, was born December 23, 
1799, in the town of Fort Ann and died June 23, 1836. He was the 
father of Hon. O. W. Sheldon and was a Jacksonian Democrat in pol- 
itics. He married Calista Spicer, who was born July 3, 1801, and 
died August 15, 1854. Mr. Sheldon inherits from his father not onl}^ 
his sound political principles, to which he has adhered during a long 
and active life, but also sterling characteristics which have character- 



32 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ized the Sheldon family through many generations, and today he is as 
highly respected as he is widely known. 



Hiram Shipman was born in the village of Fort Ann, Washington 
County. N. Y., March 8, 1834, and today he is one of the most pros- 
perous and prominent citizens of Washington County, as well as a 
man with a clean and honorable record. He owes it all to his own 
ability, energy and enterprise. 

At the age of fourteen years he was left an orphan, his mother 
having died in 1837 and his father in 1848, so that from that early age 
he had to combat the world alone. 

In the winter of 1850 he went to Whitehall, where he attended 
school, and in the following summer secured a situation in the for- 
warding office of Nathaniel Jillson. 

In 1852, at the age of eighteen years, Mr. Shipman went out to the 
Golden State, making the voyage by way of the Isthmus of Panama. 
The trip cost him $250, although he took second class passage to the 
Isthmus and steerage on the Pacific to San Francisco. On arriving- 
at San Francisco he worked in a mine near that city for three years, 
when he returned east, but returned to California again in 1856, and 
went to work in the same mine. His experience in mining was thor- 
ough and extensive, and this, with a course of study in the School of 
Mining at San Francisco, made him an expert in mining. He re- 
turned east in 1859, but in 1861 again went west, stopping in Oregon 
until 1863. and returning to Fort Ann in 1865. In that year, how- 
ever, he again went west, and in 1866 to Brazil, coming back to Ari- 
zona in the following winter. He came to St. Louis in 1862, and from 
there went by way of the Missouri River to Fort Benton and thence 
to Walla Walla, a distance of 800 miles, traveling all the way on mule 
back. Between 1865 and 1884 he opened the following mines and put 
up the mills mentioned below; he was also superintendent of the 
mills: The St. Lawrence, Ophir and Califorhia Stamp Mill, capacity 
eighteen tons per day; The Taylor Mill and Mining Company, George- 
town, Cal., Stamp Mill, capacity twenty tons per day; The Stickle 
Mill & Mining Com^pany, Angels Camp, Cal., Stamp Mill, fifty tons per 
day; The Senator Mill and Mining Company, Prescott, Arizona, 
Stamp Mill, capacity ten tons per day; The Old Vulture Mill and 




HIRAM SHIPMAN. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 33 

Mining Company, Phoenix, Arizona, Stamp Mill, capacity 240 tons 
per day. For this company he put in sixteen miles of nine inch 
water pipe that lifted the water 350 feet, for use in the mine. He 
opened the Clip Mine, 350 miles northeast of Yuma, Arizona. This 
mine was owned by Hiram Shipman, George Bowers and A. G. Hub- 
bard. The Senator Mine was developed in the face of serious trouble 
from Indians, who interfered with the mule teams bringing in sup- 
plies from Wickenburg, 150 miles distant. 

Hiram Shipman, father of the subject of this sketch, married Mary 
Anne T. Bush, daughter of Lemuel T. Bush of Fort Ann, N. Y. She 
was Holland-Dutch and French Huguenot on her father's side, being 
descended from Jan Ter Boss, who came to this country from Telliist, 
Holland, in 1662, and married, at New Amsterdam, Rachel Vermilyea, 
June 10, 1663. She was a native of Leyden and a descendant of 
Hugo Freer, one of the twelye patentees of New Paltz, N. Y. She is 
also reputed to have been a descendant of Williain of Orange and 
Anna of Egmont. 

Hiram Shipman (son) married Mrs. Sarah Dewey Pike, daughter of 
Thaddeus N. and Edna (Clark) Dewey. They have one daughter, 
Mary Bush Shipman. 

Mr. Shipman's father was a native ef Vermont, born near Mont- 
pelier, and was of English descent. He built and operated the first 
tannery in Fort Ann. This tannery originally occupied the site where 
the house of Myron Ingalsbe now stands, but soon after the canal was 
built it was removed to the location where the present tannery is situ- 
ated. He was afterwards a member of the firm of Pike & Shipman, 
Tanners and Shoemakers. 

Hiram Shipman, the subject of this sketch, has one sister, Margaret, 
wife of the Rev. Wallace Sawyer of Milford, Ohio, His wife was the 
daughter of Thaddeus N. Dewey of Fort Ann. She was the widow of 
Silas P. Pike, also of this village, by whom she had one son, John 
M. Pike. 

Hiram Shipman and Thaddeus N. Dewey were both grandsons of 
Lemuel Ter Bush or Ter Bosch, who was born at Nine Partners, 
Dutchess County, N. Y., February 15, 1770, and who, with his twin 
brother, Jonas, was baptized at the Mount Ross Church May 6, 1770. 
He was the son of Benjamin and Mary Ann (Fox) Ter Bosch and the 
grandson of Hendrikus Ter Bosch and Rachel Freer of Fishkill. His 

[e] 



34 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

great grandfather was Jan Ter Bosch or Ter Boss (as sometimes writ- 
ten) already mentioned. 

Rachel Freer, granddaughter of Hugo Freer, was born November 
lo, 1 710. Hugo Freer, one of the twelve patentees of New Paltz, 
settled upon this land in 1778, the grant of which was made by Gov- 
ernor Andross in 1677. They built shelters on the site of the village, 
which they named New Paltz, "in fond remembrance of their first 
place of rest in their exile from their native land." These settlers 
organized a church of which Hugo Freer was at first a deacon and in 
1790 an elder. The Freers furnished a large number of officers and 
men in the Revolutionary War, among whom were : Colonel John 
Freer and Captain Jacobus Freer of Dutchess County ; and Lieuten- 
ants Daniel and Anthony Freer, of Ulster. 

The great grandfather of Lemuel Ter Bosch was Johannus Tur 
Boss, of whom Brinkerhofif's History of Fishkill says: "One of the 
first, if not the first, representative man in this part of Dutchess 
County, was Johannus Tur Boss. This name has either been changed 
from the original, or otherwise has now become extinct among us. 
He is reported in the census of 17 14 and had five children. He was, 
at an early day, a Justice of the Peace and owned land about Fishkill 
village. The ground on which the Dutch Church is located was pur- 
chased from him. He was elected to the Colonial Legislature from 
1716 to 1725, for a period of nine years; is also spoken of as Judge 
in old manuscript, and died before 1735. Was evidently a leading 
man in his day. Jacobus Tur Boss, a younger brother of Johannus, 
donated the site of the Presbyterian Church. He was a member of 
the Colonial Legislature from 1737 to 1743." 

The official books in Albany say that Johannus died in 1725, while 
he was a member of the Legislature. 

Lemuel T. Bush married Mary Lane of Kingsbury, Washington 
County, April 8, 1790, having come to Fort Ann not long before. 
Their children were: Amos T., who married Lydia Sargent, daughter 
of Dr. Sargent; Benjamin T., who died at twenty; Polly T., who 
married Chester Dewey of Fort Ann; Sally T., who married Matthias 
Pike, and was mother of Silas P. Pike, lawyer of Fort Ann and Lemuel 
B. Pike, lawyer of Saratoga; Joseph T. of Tonawanda, N. Y., and 
Electa, who married Solomon Cowen of Hartford, N. Y., and became 
the mother of Esek Cowen, a prominent lawyer of New York city. 

In giving a record of the travels and operations of Mr. Shipman the 




u X^ yoyyvx^jAXl 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 35 

important fact should not be overlooked that he served for a short 
time as one of President Lincoln's body guard. 



Charles C. Smith, one of the representative men of the town of 
Fort Ann, Washington County, was born in Lincoln,. Addison County, 
Vermont, October 5, 1836, and was educated in the town of Bristol. 
His first business occupation was that of clerk in a store which began 
at the early age of thirteen years, and in which position he remained 
for five 5''ears. In 1854 he went to Granville to take a similar position 
as clerk in a general store, subsecjuently removing to Fort Edward, 
where he bought a hotel which was burned down the night he pur- 
chased it. 

In 1863 Mr. Smith enlisted in Company I, Sixteenth New York 
Artillery and during the operations of his regiment so distinguished 
himself that he received the commission of Second Lieutenant. In 
1865 he received his honorable discharge, returned home, and pur- 
chased some property m Sandy Hill. In 1866 he removed to Smith's 
Basin and lived there until 1880, when he came to Fort Ann, where 
he purchased the farm upon which he has since resided. 

Mr. Smith is a prominent Mason, being a member of the Blue 
Lodge, Chapter and Knights Templar. 

On June 2, 1867, Mr. Smith married Josephine, a daughter of 
Ezekiel and Catharine Smith of Smith's Basin. Their children 
are Mrs. W. L. Pike of Saratoga Springs, and Frank R. Smith 
who died in 1895. Mr. Smith's parents were Elwood and Anna 
(Clark) vSmith. His father died in 1847 and his mother in 1897. 

Mr. Smith is a member of Sandy Hill Lodge, No. 372, F. & A. 
M., Sandy Hill Chapter, No. 189, and Washington Commandery, No. 
S3, K. T., Saratoga Springs. He was made a Mason in 1857, when 
three days over the age of twenty-one. Both he and his wife are 
members of the Universalist Church. 

In politics Mr. Smith is a Republican and cast his first vote for 
John C. Freemont. His grandfather, Daniel, was a prisoner on 
board a British man-of-war and died in Boston Harbor, aboard the 
ship, during the Revolutionary War. 

Mrs. Smith's great-grandfather, Ebenezer, died in 1792. He was a 
Minute man in the Revolutionary War. Her grandfather, Ezekiel, 



36 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

who was six years old at the time, could remember seeing Burooyne's 
surrender. Her ancestors came from Scotland. 

Mr. Smith has never sought to take a very prominent part in public 
affairs, but he is one of the substantial men of "Washing-ton County 
and is universall}- esteemed and respected. 



Robins Miller Withejibee. — There was no more excellent or nota- 
ble man in Whitehall than Robins M. Witherbee, and a great many 
residents of this village mention his name as a local exception to the 
often stated rule that "the world misses no man," for since his un- 
timel)' and lamentable death, March 22, 1900, his absence has been 
felt not only in his family circle, but in every sphere of life in White- 
hall. 

He was born in the town of Dresden, Washington County, N. Y., 
November 16, 1843, and was educated in the schools of his native 
place. On September 2, 1861, when only seventeen years of age, he 
enlisted in Company A, 87 th New York Volunteer Infantrj', to serve 
his country in the Union cause, which he did bravely and faithfully 
until compelled to accept his honorable discharge on account of disa- 
bility. After the war Mr. Witherbee returned to Dresden, where he 
worked on the farm for a time when he began the trade of boat 
builder, at which he worked for two years, after which he worked on 
the canal as a deck hand, finally purchasing a boat and doing business 
for himself on the canal for three seasons. 

On February 26, 1874; he bought the grocery business of G. M. 
Chubb. This business under his able inanagement continued to grow 
in volume, and he added clothing, boots, shoes; gents furnishings, 
grain and feed, so that, at the time of his death, it was one of the 
largest and most prosperous business establishments in Washington 
County. Yet while building up and expanding his own business 
Mr. Witherbee always took an earnest and intelligent interest in the 
welfare of the community at large, and in order to benefit the trade of 
Whitehall, had been mainly instrumental in projecting a railroad 
from Whitehall to Granville, the charter of which was secured just 
before his death. 

He was a member of Phrenix Lodge, No. 96, F. & A. M., of Cham- 
plain Chapter, No. 25, of Commander}' No. 2, Knights Templar at 




/ 



/? A9r^mu^7^^u^ 




BIOGRAPHICAL. 37 

Albany; Consistory of the Ancient and Accepted Order of Scottish 
Rite Masons, thirty-second degree, at Albany, and of the Cypress 
Shrine. He was also very prominent as an Odd Fellow and was a 
member of Whitehall Lodge, No. 5, I. O. O. F.. of Whitehall En- 
campment, No. 69, I. O. O. F., and Whitehall Canton, Patriachs Mili- 
tant. He was Past Grand and Past Chief Patriach in this order. He 
was also a member of the Business Men's Club, of New York City, of 
Whitehall Steamer Company No. 3, a member of the society of the 
Arm}^ of the Potomac, of Post Tanner, G. A. R., and other local 
organizations. 

In politics Mr. Witherbee was a Republican, but never held or 
aspired to public office, being essentially a business man and possess- 
ing remarkable faculties in that direction. Because of his business 
operations and his high standing in social organizations he was known 
from New York City to Canada, and everywhere was highly respected. 

On April 9, 1870, Robins M. Witherbee married Mary L., daughter 
of Daniel and Susanna McLaughlin. They have one daughter living, 
Minnie E., wife of Adjutant Emmett J. Gray of Whitehall, and one 
son, Clayton Robins Witherbee, born April 17, 1873, died March 12, 
1898, at Boston. 

Mr. Witherbee was pre-eminently the architect of his own fortune. 
As the history of his life shows he started out a poor boy and through 
his own energy and ability attained a high standing, both as a wealthy 
man and a man of unimpeachable integrity, and all this was accom- 
plished in a life cut off in its prime and also in the face of a disaster 
by fire which robbed him of upwards of thirty thousand dollars in 
1886. 

On Monday, March 19, 1900, Mr. Witherbee'left Whitehall for New 
York on business and died on Thursday, March 22, from a stroke of 
apoplexy. His body was brought to Whitehall and interred with 
impressive ceremonies Monday, March 26. 

When Mr. Witherbee's body was being sent to Whitehall from New 
York, it was conveyed from the Central depot at Albany to the 
Delaware & Hudson station in a hearse sent by the Commandery and 
he was buried under Masonic auspices. His death was taken as a 
public calamity by the citizens of Whitehall, and during his funeral 
every store and retail establishment and even the schools of the vil- 
lage were closed while flags were seen at half-mast on the village 
hall, on the school buildings and on the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monu- 



38 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ment. Every organization in Whitehall turned out to his funeral and 
together made an impressive and solemn procession marching in the 
following order: Phoenix Lodge, No. 96, F. & A. M. ; Whitehall 
Lodge, No. 5, I. O. O. F. ; Post A. H. Tanner, No. 563, G A. R. ; 
Whitehall Steamer Company, No. 3 ; Citizens Hose, Torrent Engine 
Company, Burleigh Hose. 

Relating to the life and character of this truly great man we quote 
from an excellent article in the Whitehall Chronicle: 

"A man of commanding presence, in the full possession of health 
and strenth, his sudden demise seems no less inexplicable than deplo- 
rable. Through his removal, Whitehall loses a citizen foremost 
among our limited number of capitalists who are concerned in the 
advancement of every enterprise calculated to prove of benefit to the 
community. The tributes that have been paid to our townsman were 
not tendered merel}^ because of his financial standing. That he had 
abundant resources of this character at his command is true, but he 
was disposed to utilize his talent in preference to burying it. He had 
recently made investments in real estate and proposed to erect build- 
ings on our main thoroughfare that would have contributed much to 
the appearance of our village. Behind his material resources was the 
energy, executive ability and experience to engage in bold ventures 
and to bring success out of every undertaking. He was not alone a 
man of wealth, but a man of character. He was not without purpose, 
determination, and above all reliability and strict integrity. He pos- 
sessed ambition and a just sense of pride in what he accomplished 
individually ; yet the fact is too well known to scarcely need emphasis- 
that he had the welfare and progress of Whitehall well in mind. It 
was not for the prospect of mere personal gain that Mr. Witherbee 
had labored and thought so much during the past year in perfecting 
the arrangements for the construction of the proposed Granville and 
Whitehall railroad. He was even advised that the consummation of 
this proiect would benefit him but little personally. Yet he was de- 
termined that this movement should succeed, and when he applied 
his forceful faculties to any given undertaking he never wavered. 
He regretted that so much time had been lost in obtaining the char- 
ter. He brooded over the matter until, as it is now believed, a mild 
state of cerebral congestion was induced. He lived to see the fran- 
chise granted; it is to be regretted that he could not have been spared 
to witness the completion and operation of the road itself, which he 




yf^ciLo J-^^a/t^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 39 

believed would build up our town. Should the road in time be built 
and work good to Whitehall, let his labor in its behalf, and the fact 
that he was its first president, not be forgotten. In any event, let it 
go on record that he was a prime mover in the enterprise. 

" But not in the commercial sphere alone was Mr. Witherbee dis- 
tinguished. He had contributed directly and indirectly toward the 
support of every desirable institution in our midst. 

"On all occasions he was genial and courteous and his presence was 
greatly desired and appreciated. His life has its lessons for younger 
mea. He has demonstrated that energ}^ perseverance and industry 
accomplish much. He has made it plain by his active career that it is 
noble to work, not alone for one's own advancement, but that good 
may be imparted to a community and its institutions. Others under 
similar circumstances would not have risen and become distinguished 
as he became. It is the memory of a strong and noble man we honor 
with our varied tributes." 



MiLO Ingalsbe was born in the town of Kingsbury, Washington 
Count}', N. Y., May 29, 18 18, and received his early education in the 
common schools and at the Academy in Castleton, Vt. When he was 
two years of age his parents moved from Kingsbury to Hartford, N. 
Y. , and here he grew to manhood and passed almost his entire life. 
At the age of sixteen he began teaching school and continued in that 
work for several succeeding years. He early formed the determina- 
tion to make medicine his profession, and for that purpose entered 
the Albany Medical College, where he remained for some time, finally 
leaving and returning home to work on the farm, solely because he 
wished younger members of the family to have the opportunities for 
education which they could not otherwise obtain. This is a notable 
example of the high minded unselfishness which he manifested 
throughout his entire career. So it eventuated that he directed his 
life work to agricultural pursuits and their concomitants. For 
although it is rarely that a farmer gives much attention to literary or 
public affairs, he devoted a great deal of time and energy to both of 
these fields of labor. He always took great interest in education and 
our school system, and for several years was town Superintendent of 
Schools, while for fifty years he was Clerk of his school district, keep- 



40 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ing records which have been of much value in tracing the necrologi- 
cal annals of the neighborhood. He held the office of Justice of the 
Peace for twelve years and was Supervisor of the town of Hartford 
during the AVar of the Rebellion, and was an active and influential 
member of the "War Committee. He was one of the founders of the 
Washington County Agricultural Society, of which he was twice 
chosen President. He also acted as a member of the Executive 
Committee of the State Agricultural Society, and was its President 
for one year. He was also County Correspondent for the United 
States Bureau of Agriculture for a period of thirty 5'ears, and sev- 
eral very valuable articles from his pen, on the agricultural interests 
of the state, were published during that period. 

For many years he was a correspondent and observer of the Smith- 
sonian Institute and Signal Service Department. 

In all his work he was both studious and careful and never could 
tolerate half-hearted work in connection with anything with which he 
had to do. 

Although Mr. Ingalsbe was not a politician, as the word is gener- 
ally understood, and never sought or cared for public office, he took 
the keenest interest in all public affairs and his advice and counsel 
were continuous!}' sought by his neighbors and associates. He was a 
strong supporter of the free district library, in its early and critical 
days, and he sought in every way to promote the introduction and 
perusal of good and healthy literature. 

On June 5, 1842, Milo Ingalsbe married Laura Cook Chapin. ]\Irs. 
Ingalsbe was born August 21, 1817, but her mother dying when she 
was an infant, she was adopted by her uncle and aunt, Moses and 
Sophia Cook of South Hartford, N. Y. She was a grand-daughter of 
Samuel Cook, a Revolutionary soldier, whose lineage is traced back 
to Francis Cook, vrho, with his wife, came to Plymouth on the May- 
flower. 

In 1892 Mr. and .Mrs. Ingalsbe celebrated their golden wedding. 

Their only son, Grenville M. Ingalsbe, is today one of the promi- 
nent men of Washington County, of which he is Surrogate. 

Milo Ingalsbe died November 28, 1893, and was interred in Union 
Cemetery near Sandy Hill, N. Y. 

Milo Ingalsbe's parents were James and Fannie ( Harris ) Ingalsbe. 
James Ingalsbe was born in Granville, Washington Coiint}', N. Y., 
and was one of the eleven children of Aaron and Polly (Hicks). 




HON. THOMAS STEVENSON. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 41 

Ingalsbe. Aaron Ingalsbe was one of the first whitfe settlers in the 
town of Hartford, he having gone there about the year 1780 with five 
other young men. His father was Ebenezer Ingalsbe, who came 
from Shrewsbury to Hartford about 1790. He was born February 
10, 1730, and his wife October 18, 1729. Ebenezer's earliest known 
residence was at Boylston, Worcester County, Mass. Beyond his day, 
the history of the Ingalsbe family is obscure, but was a subject to 
which Milo Ingalsbe gave considerable attention, as he took much 
interest in genealogical as well as historical matters. The ancestors 
of the family in this country came from near the border line between 
England and Scotland, in the seventeenth century, and settled in 
Maine near where Bangor now stands. They subsequently moved to 
Massachusetts and some of them were participants in the King Philip 
and other early Indian wars. Ebenezer Ingalsbe was a sergeant in 
Captain Robert Andrews' company of minute men, which marched 
from the second parish of Shrewsbury to Cambridge on the Lexington 
alarm, April 19, 1775. He also served at different times during the 
Revolutionary War and attained the rank of Captain in 1777. He 
was a man of great physical vigor, but his health was much impaired 
through exposure in the service, and after his final discharge he was 
never well, and died in Hartford, August 17, 1802. Several of his 
sons were also patriot soldiers. 

Milo Ingalsbe was one of the best known and most highly respected 
men of his day in Washington County. Not only did his abilities and 
personality give him a high standing among men, but his charity, 
kindly consideration of others and his high integrity made him hosts 
of friends. 



Hon. Thomas Stevenson. — The subject of this biography was born 
on the farm where he now resides, in the town of Salem, Washington 
County, N. Y., October 27, 1831. He was educated in the district 
schools and at Washington Academy, Salem, N. Y. After leaving 
the Academy he tavight school for several terms and ultimately 
returned to farming. 

In every sphere of life in which he has engaged Mr. Stevenson 
has been markedly successful and has achieved a career that does 
great credit both to his head and heart. His abilities and integrity 

[f] 



42 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

drew to him several public positions of high responsibility and he 
discharged the duties of each with a fidelity which might well be a 
model for all men in public office. 

He represented the town of Salem on the Board of Supervisors in 
the year 18S4, and was the representative to the State Legislature for 
the first assembly district of Washington Coimty in the years 1870 
and 187 1. He was appointed United States Collector of Internal 
Revenue for the Fifteenth District of New York by President Hayes 
in 1878. This district included the counties of Washington, Rensselaer, 
Warren, Clinton and Essex. Mr. Stevenson held this position for 
nearly five years, collecting $200,000 yearly and at the expiration of 
his term of office his books balanced to a cent, and in all his dealings 
and the discharge of his duties he was fair and just to every man. 

Mr. Stevenson is not only one of the representative men of Wash- 
ington County, but his ancestors also played a prominent part in the 
development of this historic belt upon whose soil the first decisive 
blows were struck for American independence. 

He is of Scotch-Irish descent, although his people on both sides 
have been Americans for over 125 years. His parents were James B. 
and Martha ( McFarland ) Stevenson. His great-grandfather, McFar- 
land, came to America from Ireland in the year 1774, and his great- 
grandfather, Stevenson, from Scotland, in the same year, the latter 
settling on a tract of land two miles east of the present village of 
Salem. The farm is still in the possession of the Stevenson family, 
and has been since first taken up by this pioneer ancestor. 

Soon after the Revolutionary War began this pioneer Stevenson vol- 
unteered in the company commanded by Captain Alexander McNitt 
and he was a ruling elder in the first session of the old Scotch Presby- 
terian Church in Salem. He was also a member of the first Board of 
Trustees of WashingtonAcademy. His son Thomas was a ruling elder 
in this church for nearly fifty years, and his grandson, James B., for 
nearly the same length of time. Of his descendants two were physi- 
cians, three were clergymen, four were lawyers and nine were teach- 
ers, all of them inheriting the strong characteristics of their ances- 
tors in an eminent degree. 

On March 31, 1857, Hon. Thomas Stevenson married Alida Russell, 
daughter of William A. and Clarisa (McKillip) Russell. Their 
children are George, Helen and Sara. 

[Since the foregoing was written Hon. Thomas Stevenson died, on Jan. 9, 1901.] 




^^. M^7^}Th^,-,^^c^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 43 

Francis M. Van Wormer was born at Pattens Mills, a hamlet in 
the town of Kingsbury, Washington County, N. Y., in 1846, and is a 
son of Henry Fletcher Van Wormer and Jane M. Fuller Van Wormer. 

On his paternal side he is a descendant, in the fourth generation, 
from Jacob Van Wormer, a soldier of the Revolutionary War, who was 
one of the first settlers in the town of Kingsbury. He afterwards 
moved to West Fort Ann, where he built the first sawmill in the town 
and started the hamlet called Van Wormer, now West Fort Ann. 

Henry Van Wormer, a son of Jacob Van Wormer, who was father 
of Henry Fletcher Van Wormer, served in the American army at the 
battle of Plattsburgh. 

Henry Fletcher Van Wormer, father of Francis M. Van Wormer, 
was born in 181 2, and died at his home at West Fort Ann in 1899, 
aged eighty-seven years. 

The Van Wormers are of Dutch descent. Francis M. was reared in 
the town of Fort Ann, until he was sixteen years of age, when he en- 
listed, August II, 1862, in Company D, 123d Regiment, New York 
Volunteer Infantry, as musician (drummer boy) and participated in 
all the battles and skirmishes in whicn the regiment was engaged, 
namely: Chancellorsville, Va. ; Gettysburg, Pa. ; Sherman's cam- 
paigns from Chattanooga to Atlanta, and from Atlanta to the sea; 
Sherman's campaign through the Carolinas, in which was fought the 
battles of Averysboro and Bentonville, and several skirmishes preced- 
ing the surrender of Johnson's Confederate Army to General Sher- 
man, near Raleigh, N. C. The war being closed, the regiment was 
discharged in June, 1865. 

One year later, in 1866, Mr. Van Wormer came to Sandy Hill and 
assisted as a millwright in building the paper mill of Howland, Clark 
& Company, now the Union Bag & Paper Company, and remained in 
their employ for five years, after which he entered the employ of P. 
H. Wait, proprietor of the Baker Falls Iron & Machine Works, where 
he learned the mxachinist's trade, and was afterwards made superin- 
tendent of the works. These works were founded by P. H. Wait in 
i860, and after several changes in the management they were pur- 
chased by F. M. Van Wormer and T. E. Wells, and were run by them 
up to about 1882, when Otis A. Tefft and N. E. Packer became mem- 
bers of the firm, and the name of the firm was changed to the Sandy 
Hill Iron & Brass Works. A new machine shop and foundry was 
built, and in 1883 Otis A. Tefft was succeeded by his son, Richard C. 



44 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Tefft, and in a short time Mr. Wells and Mr. Packer sold their inter- 
ests to Mr. Van Wormer and Mr. Tefft, who conducted the business 
very successfully up to 1897, when the company was incorporated 
under the laws of the State of New York, at which time Charles T. 
Beach, cashier of the First National Bank, became a member of the 
company and was elected treasurer; and in 1900 Hon. John H. Derby 
became a stockholder and was elected a director. 

The present officers of the company are: President, F. M. Van 
Wormer; Vice-President and Secretary, R. C. Tefft; Treasurer, C. T. 
Beach ; Directors, F. M. Van Wormer, C. T. Beach, R. C. Tefft and 
J. H. Derby. 

During the year 1900 a new plant is being built, consisting of office 
building 54x46 feet, machine shop 90x300 feet long, blacksmith 
department 50x90 feet, store-room 50x90 feet, pattern storage 50x140 
feet, boiler and engine room 54x54 feet, foundry building 75x150 feet. 

These works are to be run by steam, the power transmitted by 
electric motors, and lighted by electricity from their own dynamos. 
This plant when running at its full capacity will employ about 200 
hands, while their old plant, which they have recently sold, employed 
about eighty hands. These shops will be provided with every device 
and appliance for turning out accurate work in the shortest possible 
time. 

The present company are engaged in the manufacture of pulp and 
paper mill machinery, including Fourdrinier and cylinder paper ma- 
chines, wet machines, pulp screens, wood barkers, wood splitters, 
water screens, calender rolls, paper bag machinery and general 
machine work. Their machinery can be found in operation in many 
of the largest and best mills in the country. 

In 1869 Mr. Van Wormer was married to Sarah M. Cornell of Sandy 
Hill, N. Y., and they have resided in town ever since. 

Mr. Van Wormer is a member of W. M. Collin Post No. 587, De- 
partment of New York, G. A. R., and has served as Commander 
several terms, and is a member of Sandy Hill Council, Royal Arcanum, 
No. 587, and has served several terms as Regent, and also as District 
Deputy Grand Regent for Washington and Warren Counties. 

He has been identified with the village fire department since 1881, 
having served as president and foreman of the J. W. Wait Hose Com- 
pany for several years. Mr. Van Wormer is also a member of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 45 

School Board and the Board of Health, also a member of the Sewer 
Commission. 

His excellent reputation is due to his skill and energy and square 
dealing, and to the fact that every new improvement in the working 
or style of machines which the company builds are considered, and if 
of value, are adopted. 

In politics Mr. Van Wormer is a staunch Republican, and he has 
been tendered any office in the gift of his town, but owing to the 
large amount of business he has to look after he has declined all 
political honors. 

And now, at the age of 54 years, he is devoting all his time and 
energy to make a success of the new machine shop and foundry plant ; 
the ambition of his life has been to have the best machine shop for the 
manufacture of paper and pulp mill machinery in the state or country, 
and he is about to realize the height of his ambition. 



LoREN Allen. — In connection with the great paper industry con- 
ducted by the Allen Brothers Company, at Sandy Hill, more than a 
passing mention is due to Loren Allen, who has been prominently 
associated with this enterprise, from its incipiency, and to whose inde- 
fatigable enterprise and financial ability a great measure of the won- 
derful success achieved is due. 

Loren Allen was born in the town of Galway, Saratoga County, N. 
Y., December 7, 1833. His father, Elihu Allen, was originally en- 
gaged in farming in Saratoga County, but being ambitious to extend 
his operations, he joined with a partner and began to make paper on a 
small scale at Stillwater. This was in 1846. In 1850 he and his two 
sons, Hiram and Loren Allen, came to Sandy Hill, and in 1857 the sons 
began making paper here, still on a small scale. Through good man- 
agement the business grew steadily, and about 1867 the firm of Allen 
Brothers was formed, consisting of Hiram and Loren Allen. The 
business was continued under this name until 1890 when the incorpo- 
rated company of Allen Brothers Company was formed. The officers 
of the company are Hiram Allen, President; Loren Allen, Vice-Presi- 
dent; Marcus C. Allen, Secretary. 

When Allen Brothers began making paper at Sandy Hill they had 
but one small machine, with a capacity of 600 pounds a day. At the 



46 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

end of a year they were turning out 1300 pounds daily, but now their 
output approximates seventy tons per diem, and the company is recog- 
nized as one of the great factors in the paper industry of America, 
and the paper industry of America is the greatest in the world. 

In addition to devoting a great deal of energy to the interests of his 
business, Loren Allen has always taken a lively interest in the welfare 
and success of Sandy Hill. He has served three terms on the Board 
of Trustees and was President of the village two terms. He was a 
member of the Board of Education for nine years. It was during this 
time that the great fight to build a new schoolhouse was waged. Mr. 
Allen was naturally on the progressive side and in favor of building 
the school, and to him certainly belongs a full share of the credit of 
erecting the fine Union School Building, of which Sandy Hill is today 
justly proud. The erection of this school and the healthy agitation 
which preceded it, was a starting point for a general improvement of 
the schools of the whole county. Mr. Alien is also a prominent 
Mason. 

In 1S56 Loren Allen married Mary Ann VanDenburgh, who died 
May 18, 1879, leaving three children, namely: Clifford H., Charles 
L., and Mary Ida, who married Mr. Liddle. On February 16, 1S8], 
Mr. Allen married, for his second wife, Harriet A. VanDenburgh. 

Loren Allen's parents were Elihu and Laura (Cornell) Allen. His 
grandfather, John Allen, came to Saratoga County from New Bed- 
ford, Mass. The progenitor of the Allen family in America was of 
English origin and came to this country in the early New England 
davs. 



Martin H. Adams was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washington 
County, N. Y., August 12, 1839, and was educated in the common 
schools of his native town and at the Fort Edward Institute. Mr. 
Adams has always followed farming and has resided on his present 
farm for the last fourteen years. He is a prominent Mason, being- 
Master of the lodge to which he belongs, and has also held important 
political offices, among them Supervisor of the town of Fort Ann, 
Justice of the Peace and Justice of Sessions. 

On the 17th of December, 1879, Mr. Adams married Mina McDon- 
ald, who was born in the village of Luzerne. Warren County, N. Y. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 47 

They have eight children, four sons and four daughters, namely: 
Christie M., Charles T., Ralph H., Mary E., Laura R., Martin H. 
Jr., Stella M. and John J. 

Mr. Adams' parents were John and Martha Adams, both of whom 
were natives of New Hampshire. 



J. Albert Ackley was born in the town of Jackson, Washington 
County, N. Y., on the farm on which he now resides, August 22, 
1853, and was educated in the academies at Salem, N. Y. , and Cam- 
bridge, N. Y. He has always been a farmer, as were his father and 
grandfather before him. 

His father was John Ackley, who was born July 20, 1820, and his 
grandfather was Solomon Ackley, who was also born in the town of 
Jackson. His mother's maiden name was Frances E. Cleveland. 

Mr. Ackley takes an active interest in public affairs, and held the 
office of deputy sheriff for eight years. He is a Democrat in politics 
and a consistent supporter of his party. 

J. Albert Ackley married Loie A., daughter of Warren and Esther 
(Clough) Kenyon, and they have four children, namely: Minnie K., 
John W. , Charles H. and Esther L. 

Mr. Ackley has one sister, Nettie P., wife of W. H. Crandall. 

The Ackley family is one of the oldest and most highly respected 
in the town of Jackson. 



John L. Agan, a prosperous business man of Cambridge, N. Y., was 
born in Schaghticoke, N. Y., June 11, 1843, and was educated in the. 
district schools. While still quite a young man he was associated in 
the furniture and undertaking business with S. S. Scott at Benning- 
ton, Vermont. 

In 1874 Mr. Agan moved to Cambridge and opened up an establish- 
ment in the same line of business, in the old White Meeting House 
building, on the corner of Main and Park streets. After sixteen years 
of successful business in that location, in 1890 he purchased and 
moved into the Miles P. Barton building, which is also on Main street. 



48 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Here he still continues in the furniture and undertaking business, in 
which he is both popular and successful. 

In 1874 Mr. Agan married Bertha Luce, of Stowe, Vt., who died, 
leaving no children. 

On the 2d day of May, 1883, he married for his second wife, Nancy 
M. Blair, of Cambridge, and they have two children, namely: Berta 
B. and Eliza B. 

Mr. Agan's ancestors were from the North of Ireland. His parents 
were Jacob and Margaret (Bonesteel) Agan. His great grandfather, 
Patrick Agan, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. 



Joseph Brown was born in the town of Luzerne, Warren County, 
N. Y., February 15, 1851. His father was a lumberman and he also 
followed that business for some time, particularly in cutting and rafting 
timber to New York. In 1862 the family came to Fort Edward, where 
Mr. Brown has since resided. His principal occupation has been that of 
contractor, lumberman and speculator. His operations have extended 
into many different lines of trade in which his fine business abilities 
have made him uniformly successful. He is also largely interested 
in real estate and owns one of the leading liveries of Fort Edward. 

Mr. Brown is a member of the Masonic fraternity and is a Demo- 
crat in politics. He has always been very active in the interest of his 
party and has been Assessor for a period of nine years and Trustee of 
the village of Fort Edward for ten years, as well as a member of the 
Board of Education for the same length of time ; all of which indicates 
the high public opinion in which he is held in this notably Republican 
County. He has been delegate to many town and county Democratic 
conventions, and is practically the Democratic leader in the town of 
Fort Edward. 

Although a successful man himself, Mr. Brown has always evinced 
the kindest sympathy for those less fortunate than himself, and has 
always been the poor man's friend, and many are the worthy deeds 
attributed to him. He is also public spiiited to a high degree and 
every enterprise looking toward the advancement of his community 
or county always elicits his unstinted support. 

In 1873 Mr. Brown married Alfraetta Gilbert, daughter of Henry 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 49 

and Martha ( Gailey ) Gilbert, and they have two children, Maud and 
Joseph Brown, Jr. 

Mr. Brown's parents w^ere Moses and Electa ( Herrick ) Brown. 
Moses Brown and his wife, Electa Herrick, were both natives of 
Warren County, N. Y. The former was born in Luzerne and the 
latter in Schroon. 

His g-randfather was a settler in Dutchess County and was one of 
the first settlers at Glens Falls, N. Y. 



Charles W. Bowtell, the leading hardware merchant of Fort Ed- 
ward, was born in the city of Spring-field, Mass., and was educated at 
Bellows Falls. He learned telegraphy and followed it at intervals, 
with the Vermont Central Railroad, with which line he was also 
associated for seven years in the locomotive department as engineer. 
After this, he was engaged in the telegraph business for two years, 
and during his engagement as telegrapher, he worked all over the 
New England states. He then came to Fort Edward and embarked 
in the book and newspaper business, which he continued for' seven 
years. He then went to Canada and was engaged in street railroad 
building at Brantford, Ont., for some time. Here he built a street 
railway, of which he was president, until he sold out to the Edison 
Electric Company. He next went to New York City and worked for 
the Postal Telegraph Company and the Commercial Cable Company 
for five years as operator. Finally, in 1891, he returned to Fort Ed- 
ward and embarked in the hardware business. 

During the past nine 3^ears Mr. Bowtell has not only been a promi- 
nent factor in the business life of the village of Fort Edward and 
surrounding country, but has also been active in public affairs. He 
has always been a Republican, and was President of the village of 
Fort Edward in 1895. He is Chairman of the Young Men's Christian 
Association, in which he takes a warm interest, and is also Trustee of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

Mr. Bowtell married Sarah L. Hoysradt. 

Mr. Bowtell's parents were Samuel and Margaret (Mahoney) Bow- 
tell. His grandfather, Josiah Bowtell, was of old New Hampshire 
stock. 

fg] 



50 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HIvSTORY. 

Parsijnius Burch was born in Schaghticoke, Rensselaer County, N. 
Y., May 28, 1833, and was educated at the district schools of his native 
place. He left school at the a.^e of eighteen and began teaching, 
which profession he followed for four years, when he embarked in 
farming, which he has made his life occupation. 

On July 4, 1854, Mr. Burch married Maria G. Lee of Cambridge, 
and they have a family of six children, namely: Zina L., Ida P., 
Elmer, Sylvia D.. Edward D. and Roscoe C. Mr. Burch's parents 
were Ira and Elizabeth (DeGroff) Burch. His grandfather was 
Henry Burch who was a soldier in the war of 181 2. Mr. Burch has 
always taken an active part in public affairs and was Justice of the 
Peace for some time. In 1888 he accepted the position of Superin- 
tendent of Poor, which position he still retains with great acceptibil- 
ity. Mrs. Burch's parents were Zina L. and Patience ( Durfee ) Lee. 

Zina L. Burch was for some time a merchant in South Cambridge. 
He started the business there in the year 1855, but subsequently sold 
out and came to Argyle, where he has been Superintendent of the 
Poor for three years. 

Ida P. Burch married Henry E. Norton, a prosperous farmer of 
Cambridge in the year 1878. Elmer married Lillian Kelley of Cam- 
bridge. Sylvia D. married S. H. Clement of Argyle in the year 
1892. Edward D. is now Deputy Superintendent under his father. 
Mr. Burch was Supervisor of the town of Cambridge in the years of 
1876-77. 



A. C. Barkley was born at West Hebron, Washington County, N. 
Y., December 20, 1861, and was educated at the West Hebron Acad- 
emy. He has followed the business of furniture dealer and under- 
taker all his life. He is a member of the Salem Lodge No. 45, I. O. 
O. F., and has held different town offices. 

On January 7, 1888, A. C. Barkley married Hattie McKnight, and 
they have six children, namely: Hattie, Floy, Leon, Guy, Gladys 
and Albertine. 

Mr. Barkley's parents were James and Nanc}^ (Patterson) Barkley. 
His father was twice married, first to Janet Eggleston, on January 25, 
1854, who died July 23, 1857, and for his second wife he married 
Nancy Patterson on July 21, 1859. She was born October 27, 1830, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 51 

and died November 21, 1894, and was the mother of the subject of 
this sketch. By his first wife James Barkley had one son, Frankie, 
who died at the ag-e of thirteen ; and by his second wife three children, 
namely, Hattie J., born January 8, i860, who died May 10, 1880; John 
H., born August 2, 1864, died May 7, 1895, and A. C. Barkley, the 
subject of this sketch. 

A. C. Barkley's paternal grandfather, who was born in 1789, and 
died February 28, 1843, married Margaret McDougall (born in 1793 
and died October i, 185 1) October 5, 181 2. 

To them were born ten children, namely: Jane, born March 27, 
1814, died May 4, 1869; Samuel, born October 10, 1815; Alexander, 
born May 4, 1817; Agnes, born January 15, 1819; William J., born 
November 23, 1820, died vSeptember 2, 1822; John J., born January 7, 
1824; Margaret A., born July 28, 1827, died May 30, 1857; Eliza R., 
born April 5, 1829, died June 27, 1856; James, born June 23, 1831, 
died November 2, 1892; Harriet N., born January 26, 1834. 

Jane Barkley married Samuel Donaldson Deccember 16, 1841; 
Samuel married January 23, 1845; Alexander married Margaret 
Armatage, October i, 1845; Marg-aret A., married February 28, 1848. 



Joseph W. Brown was born in the town of Kingsbury, Washington 
County, N.Y., March 11, 1833, and was educated in the public schools 
of his native town and at Glens Falls, receiving so liberal an educa- 
tion that at the age of seventeen he began teaching school. This 
occupation he continued for seven winter terms. 

On October 24, 1855, Joseph W. Brown married Ida M., daughter of 
Theodore and Pamelia (Kidder) Cross. 

Mrs. Brown traces her ancestry back to the Rev. Dr. Richard 
Kidder, who was Bishop of Bath and Wells, England, in 1320. 

Mr. Brown's parents were George V. and Abigail (Sherman) Brown. 
Mr. Brown is one of the best known and most highly respected men 
in the town of Kingsbury. He has held the office of Justice of the 
Peace for sixteen years, and is postmaster at Vaughns, to which office 
he was appointed in May, 1898. He has been a life-long Republican, 
and has always been a staunch supporter of that party. 



52 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Dennis Brownell, one of the best known and most prominent citi- 
zens' of the town of Easton, was born in Easton, Washington County, 
N. Y., October 22, 1852, and is a son of Elijah W. and Deborah 
(Gifford) Brownell. He was educated in the district schools of his 
native town, and has followed the occupation of farming all his life, 
in which he has been so prosperous that he is today universally 
regarded as one of the leading farmers of Washington County. 

He married Ida E. Norton on November 29, 1876, who died Febru- 
ary 22, 1887, leaving five children, namely: Harry E., Esek E., Alice 
P., Addie M. and Aaron C. D. Brownell. Mrs. Brownell was a 
daughter of Leroy and Safronia ( Burch ) Norton. 



Henry W. Becker was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
County, N. Y., January 31, 1861, and is a son of Jacob V. and Sarah 
( Small ) Becker. He was ediicated in his native town and at the 
Marshall Seminary, and since leaving school has always been engaged 
in the occupation of farming. 

On January 29, 1890, Henry W. Becker married Emma, daughter 
of John F. and Lydia (Butler) Skiff, and they have one daughter, 
Elna G. Becker, who was born Aiigust 5, 1891. 

Mrs. Becker is a highly educated and unusually intelligent woman 
and has been correspondent for the past ten years for local and city 
papers. She has also written a number of historical sketches and 
short stories, evincing a fine literary taste and knowledge of the 
world. She is also identified with the Women's Christian Temper- 
ance Union and is superintendent of press work in the Society of 
Political Ecjuality. 

In religious matters Mrs. Becker is associated with the Reform 
Church. Prior to her marriage she taught school a number of terms 
and has always retained her interest in educational matters. 

She traces her genealogy back to the year 1625 and to Welch ances- 
try; her people, however, have been Atnericans for generations, and 
her great-grandfather was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 53 

Russell A. Borden was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
County, N. Y.. April 12, 1848, and is a son of Henry T. and Caroline 
( Robinson ) Borden. He was educated in the public schools and at 
the Marshall Seminary, and after completing his education, taught 
school for several terms. He then took up the study of civil engi- 
neering and spent twenty-five years in this profession. He finally 
embarked in farming, in which occupation he is at present engaged. 
He has a fine farm and a remarkably fine apple orchard, which com- 
prises 1200 trees. 

Mr. Borden is a prominent man in the town of Boston and takes an 
intelligent interest in all public affairs. He is a Republican in politics 
and was Justice of the Peace for a period of eight years. 

He is very prominent in Masonic circles and is a member of Victor 
Lodge No. 680, F. & A. M., of Schaghticoke, Montgomery Chapter 
No. 257, R. A. M., Bloss Council No. 14, R. & S. M., and of Washing- 
ton Commandery No. 33, K. T., of Saratoga Springs. 

In 1878 Russell A. Borden married Augusta Buckley, daughter of 
Spencer and Frances (Bosworth) Buckley, and they have five children, 
Lucy J., Harry S., Ernest M. and Oscar. 

Mr. Borden's father was of French descent, and his mother's people 
came from Rhode Island. 

The Buckley family is one of the old, wealthy and highly respected 
families of Washington County. 



Franklin Buckley was born on the farm on which he now resides 
in the town of Easton, Washington County, N. Y., December 8, 1855. 
He is a son of Spencer A. Buckley, who was also born on this same 
farm. His mother's name was Frances (Bosworth) Buckley, and he 
is of the fifth generation that has lived on this farm. 

Franklin Buckley was educated at the district schools and at the 
Friends Seminary at Easton and at the Troy Academy. At the age 
of seventeen he left school to work on his fathers's farm and has since 
continued in this business. 

On February 14, 1877, Franklin Buckley married Helen, daughter 
of Elisha and Anna (Hoag) Gifford. Their children are Ida May, 
Anna, (deceased) Mabelle F., Irvin and Albert. 



54 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Politically Mr. Buckley is a Republican and has been Road Com- 
missioner of his town for six years. 

He has spent considerable time in travel, and in the year 1878 he 
was engaged in the wheat business in California. He is one of the 
enterprising and representative men in the town of Easton. 

Along- with farming, Mr. Buckley is one of the largest stock raisers 
in Washington County, making a specialty of Guernsey cattle, which 
he imports. 



Isaac Addison Burton was born in the town of Easton, on the 
east bank of the Hudson River, in Washington County, N. Y., Sep- 
tember 29, 1829. He was educated in the public schools of Easton 
and at the Greenwich Acadeiny, and after his school days, he took up 
the occupation of farming, in which he has continued all his life, and 
with such success that he has accumulated wealth and become an hon- 
ored and prominent citizen of Washington County. 

In 1 88 1 Mr. Burton was elected President of the Greenwich Na- 
tional Bank, which position he held until 1898. He has lived on his 
present farm for sixty-seven years. 

During his younger days Mr. Burton taught school for a time, and 
throughout his long career he has always taken an intelligent interest 
in all public affairs. 

In politics he is a Republican, and held the office of Commissioner 
for six years. 

His life carries us back to the several political parties and through 
many great changes in this country. During the existence of the 
party known as the "Know Nothings," he was a member of that 
organization. 

His father was Simon Burton. He was a miller by trade and also 
taught school several terms, and in his later years turned his attention 
to farming. He was a great abolitionist in his day. 

Mr. Burton's ancestors were of English descent and first settled in 
this country in the state of Rhode Island. From there they came to 
Washington County in the year 1800. 

His grandfather, Uriah Burton, was a millwright by trade. Mr. 
Burton's mother was Phoebe B (Beadle) Burton. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 55 

Leander E. Bailey was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., December 15, 1836, and was educated in the schools 
of his native town. His principal occupation is farming, but he has 
also engaged both in the blacksmith and carpenter's trades. He has 
lived on his present farm for fifty years. He is a prominent man in 
his neighborhood and town, and has held the important office of Trus- 
tee, besides minor offices. 

In 1 86 1 Mr. Bailey married Miss Martha Barber. She was a native 
of Dresden and a daughter of John and Betsej^ (Benjamin) Barber. 
They have a family of three children, namely: Norman W., Verona 
D. and May E. The last named is assistant principal of the Fort Ann 
High School, and is an unusually accomplished young lady. 

Mr. Bailey's parents were Howard and Mary (Cutter) Bailey, both 
of whom were natives of Fort Ann. His father died in 1879 and his 
mother in 1884, each at the age of eighty-four years. 



William J. Boyd, son of David and Ellen (McLoud) Boyd, was 
born in Randfordshire, Scotland, November i, 1865. In October, 

1885, he came to the United States and settled in Boston, where he 
remained for a time, when he removed to Troy and finally, in June, 

1886, came to Whitehall and engaged as fireman on the Delaware & 
Hudson Railroad. After serving four years as fireman, he was made 
engineer, which position he still holds. In July, 1897, be bought the 
Broughton pharmacy, which business he still owns, but gives the busi- 
ness no attention, having for his manager there Mr. C. H. Broughton. 

On September 14, 1892, Mr. Boyd married Mary R., daughter of 
Hamilton and Mary J. Morris. They have one child, Grace K., born 
January 13, 1894. Mrs. Boyd died December 25, 1896. 

Mr. Boyd's parents still reside in Scotland and he is one of a family 
of sixteen children, six brothers and nine sisters. 

Mr. Boyd is a member of the Presbyterian Church, and in politics 
is a Republican, but has never taken any active part in political 
affairs. 



56 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

John Barrett was born in Count}^ Limerick, Ireland, and is a son 
of Richard and Catharine (Connell) Barrett. He came to America in 
1861, and in 1863 embarked in the grocery business in Whitehall, in 
which he has since been successfully engaged. 

Mr. Barrett married Ann O'Brien of County Clare, Ireland, and 
they have two children, namely, Mary A. and James M. 

Mr. Barrett is a thorough business man, possessing that geniality 
which is peculiar to his race, and is one of the most popular business 
men in the county. 



Benjamin H. Bascom was born in the town of Benson, Rutland 
County, Vt., ]\Iarch 29, 1849. He was educated in the district schools 
and at Poultney Commercial College, from which he was graduated 
in 1867. He then entered a general store in Pittsford as a clerk, 
where he remained two years, and then came to Whitehall. He 
entered the employ of H. R. Waits in his clothing store, and remained 
with him for six years. Mr. Bascom then Went west to Lake City, 
Colorado, where he engaged in the grocery business on his own 
account, and also dealt largely in miners' supplies. He remained in 
Lake City for a period of ten years and in 1886 returned to Whitehall, 
where he formed a copartnership with W. C. Harding, under the firm 
name of Harding & Bascom. In 1890 the firm name was changed to 
Harding, Bascoin & Company, and they are dealers in clothing, gents 
furnishing, boots and shoes, and also have a large custom tailor trade. 
Mr. Bascom is a thorough business man, enterprising and successful, 
and this establishment is recognized as one of the representative busi- 
ness houses, not only of Whitehall, but of Washington County. 

Mr. Bascom married Elizabeth, daughter of Alfred and Sarah 
(Wright) Griswold, and they have four children, namely: Benjamin 
H. Jr., William C, Elizabeth and Harland J. 

Mr. Bascom's parents were Benjamin J. and Ursula (Goodrich) Bas- 
com. Benjamin J. Bascom was born in Newport, N. H., February 
12, 1806, and his wife was born in Benson, Rutland County, Vermont, 
March 10, 1806. He died in June, 1891, and his wife in July, 1884. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 57 

Robert H. Brett. — The subject of this sketch, who is one of 
Whitehall's substantial and enterprising- citizens, is a native of this 
town, where he was born October 28, 1844. He was educated in the 
public schools of Whitehall, and after leaving school he entered his 
father's grocery store, where he worked intermittently for twenty 
years. During this time also he was inspector of boats on the canal, 
to which position he was appointed by the state. 

In April, 1895, he established his present business, that of dealer in 
groceries, flour, feed, grain and horse clothing. The business has 
been a pronounced success from the outset and is today the leading 
house in its line in Whitehall. 

Mr. Brett is a thorough business man, possessed of a high order of 
executive ability, which he evinced during his highly creditable war 
career and which has made him one of the sound men of Washington 
County. He is a veteran of the War of the Rebellion, having enlisted 
in August, 1863, in Company D., Second New York Velreran Cavalry. 
He participated with his regiment in all its operations during the last 
year of the war and was Quartermaster-Sergeant part of the time. 
He received his honorable discharge November 8, 1865, as Quarter- 
master-Sergeant. 

Mr. Brett takes an active interest in everything pertaining to the 
public welfare of his village and county, and is particularly interested 
in the cause of education and is a member of the Whitehall School 
Board. 

On May 8, 1867, Mr. Brett married Catharine, daughter of John 
and Mary Grady. They have one child, a daughter, Margaret J. 
Brett. Mr. Brett's parents were John and Margaret (Marshall) Brett. 

Socially Mr. Brett is as much distinguished for his genial disposi- 
tion as he is in commercial circles for his sound judgment, and his 
business and financial standing place him in the front rank of the 
solid men of Washington County. 



C. N. Brown was born in Vermont, May 17, 1847, and received his 
education partly in his native state and partly in Fort Ann. He came 
to Fort Ann in 1859. When he first started in business he opened a 
meat market which he conducted for some years with great success 

[h] 



58 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

and then extending his operations, he became a wholesale meat dealer 
in the conduct of which he is still engaged. He also owns and man- 
ages a fine stock farm. 

Mr. Brown is a prominent Mason and an active member of the 
Republican party. In 187 1 he married Frances A. Brown of Fort 
Ann, and they have three children, namely: Fred A., Mary E. and 
Betsey E. 

Mrs. Brown's parents were Pryer and Betsey Brown. Mr. Brown's 
father, Gardner Brown, was born in Dresden and his mother, Esther 
( Nobles ) Brown was born in Vermont. 



John J. Cunningham, son of Edward and Mary J. (Hart) Cun- 
ningham, was born in Sandy Hill, Washington County, N. Y, , 
November 4, '1849. He was educated in the schools of Sandy Hill 
and at Troy, and began his active life as clerk in a store in Fort 
Edward, where he remained one year. Leaving this position, he 
went to Troy and entered upon the study of architecture and civil 
engineering, which he pursued for two years, and for the next seven 
years was engaged in contracting in the building line. At this time 
he was appointed special agent for James Shanahan, Superintendent 
of Public Works of the state of New York. Subsequently he received 
the appointment of Superintendent of Section No. 2, Champlain 
Canal, and filled this position for four years. 

Mr. Cunningham has been a very active man all his life, and has 
been identified with many important interests, and has done a great 
deal of contracting as a builder. He was for a time connected with 
the Drake & Stratton Company of New York City, and while asso- 
ciated with that company he built the pulp and paper mills at Fort 
Edward, the power station at Carvers Falls, Vt., Alice Falls pulp mills, 
the pulp mills at Sandy Hill and Fort Miller, and carried through 
many other large and important contracts. 

He is now a member of the McDonough-Cunningham Company of 
Troy, N. Y. , the leading contracting firm in northeastern New York. 
They constructed the Indian River dam at Indian Lake. 

Mr. Cunningham has always taken a great interest in his native 
place, and to his energy and enterprise Sandy Hill owes a great deal. 
Not only the business life of the place, but its public affairs and its 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 59 

educational interests have always been matters of g-reat importance to 
him. He has been President of the village of Sandy Hill, was for a 
number of years one of the village Trustees, and has held a seat in 
the Board of Education for a period of twenty years. He has been 
prominently identified with public matters and is a stockholder in the 
Sandy Hill Water Works, and was at one time connected with the 
pulp mills of Sandy Hill. To his enterprise also, Sandy Hill owes 
the fine Cunningham Hotel building-, which is not only an ornament 
to the village, but is the finest hotel building in the county. 

On November 20, 1873, John J. Cunningham married Mary J., 
daughter of Owen and Bee ( Corcoran ) Kelley. They have seven 
children, namely: Edward J., Thomas H., John J., Jr., Eugene, 
Rosemary, Helen and Florence. 

The second son, Thomas H. Cunningham, M. D., graduated from 
the Alban)^ Medical College, in the class of 1899, and is now house 
surgeon in the Albany City Hospital. 



Leonard W. Cronkhite was born in the village of Sandy Hill, 
Washington County, N. Y., May 3, 1826. He was educated in the 
local schools, at Barnes' Classical School and the Granville Academy, 
enjoying educational advantages which were rare in those early days. 
After leavingschool he took a position in a dry goods store and after 
five years' experience in this capacity he embarked in business on his 
own account as a merchant at Sandy Hill. This business he con- 
tinued successfully for twelve years. In i860 Mr. Cionkhite engaged 
in the sheep raising business in Illinois, and subsequently in the ship 
timber business on Lake Huron, and in these undertakings he was 
successful. Subsequently he turned his attention to banking, both at 
Sandy Hill and in the state of Michigan. He is President of the Na- 
tional Bank of Sandy Hill. The National Bank of Sandy Hill has 
never failed to declare a semi-annual dividend, and has earned for its 
stockholders, for thirty-seven years, an average of over twenty per 
cent per annum. Mr. Cronkhite is also Director of the First National 
Bank of Fort Edward. 

In 1852 Mr. Cronkhite married Bessie A. Green, daughter of Henry 
and Anna Green, of Queensbury, N. Y. 



60 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Cronkhite is a member of the Baptist Church and for many 
years served as Deacon and as a member of the Board of Trustees of 
this society. 

He has several times been elected presiding officer of the Union 
Baptist Association, and Treasurer of the Board. He has also taken 
a great personal interest in foreign missions and has contributed 
largely to their support. He also takes a deep interest in educational 
matters and has been President of the Board of Education of Sandy 
Hill. For many years also he has been a member of the Board of 
Trustees of Colgate University, and was Chairman of its Finance 
Committee for a considerable time. He has also served as a Director 
of the New York State Baptist Educational Society. This society has 
a record of aiding annually an average of one hundred young men for 
the ministry. 

Mr. Cronkhite was also for many years a member of the Board of 
Directors of the Washington County Agricultural Society and served 
two terms as President of that society. 

Leonard W. Cronkhite's parents were Woolsey and Ann (Freeman) 
Cronkhite. They were natives of Dutchess County, but settled in 
Washington County about the beginning of the nineteenth century. 
Woolsey Cronkhite was a merchant and manufacturer, a man of ster- 
ling worth and much ability, but he died when Leonard W. Cronkhite 
was only four years of age. Mr. Cronkhite has, therefore, attained 
his great success in life without any fraternal assistance and solely 
through his own energy, enterprise and ability. 



James H. Chees;\ian, one of the oldest and most reputable business 
men in the town of Fort Edward, was born in the town of Fort Ed- 
ward, Washington County, N. Y., April 8, 1837, and is a son of James 
and Olive (Ives) Cheesman. 

He was educated at Fort Edward and began the active duties of 
life as a clerk for his father, who kept a general store in Fort Edward. 
Subsequently he occupied the position of clerk in a hardware store in 
Schenectady during the year 1857, and in 1858 embarked in business 
for himself, in the general merchandise line, in Fort Edward. In 1865 
he engaged in the book and stationery business, which he has con- 
ducted for thirty-five years. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 61 

On May 22, i860, James H. Cheesman married Sarah vS. Wright, 
daughter of George and LaVendee (Woodward) Wright. They have 
two children, Caroline E. and James Earl Cheesman. 

Mr. Cheesman comes of an old and honorable American family, and 
during his long business life in Fort Edward, his career has been 
characterized by the highest integrity. 

He is a member of Washington Council No. 261, Royal Arcanum, 
and of the A. O. U. W., Hudson Valley Lodge, No. 130, and was Town 
Clerk for twenty-five years. 



Byron A. Carr, Superintendent of the International Pulp, Paper 
and Sulphite Plant at Fort Edward, is eniitled to more than a passing 
mention in the history of Washington County, because of the position 
he occupies at the head of the great industrial enterprise at Fort Ed- 
ward, and one of the largest in the state. 

He was born in Fulton County, N. Y., August 3, 1857, and was edu- 
cated at the Northville Union School. His first active occupation was 
that of a farmer in Washington County, which vocation he pursued 
for five years. He then took up the trade of millwright, and after 
three years' apprenticeship became a master mechanic. In his 
capacity of master mechanic and Superintendent he went to Glens 
Falls in June, 1882, and put up the Glens Falls mill, in connection 
with which he remained until 1890. On March 31st of that year he 
came to Fort Edward to assume the responsible position which he 
still holds and ably fills, that of Superintendent of the Pulp Mill, 
which gives employment to an average force of 550 men, and which 
inanufactures into pulp 45,000 cords of wood annually. 

Mr. Carr is not only prominently identified with a great industrial 
enterprise, but also with public affairs and educational matters, in 
particular, in which he takes a deep and intelligent interest. He has 
been a member of the Board of Education since 1891, and is also con- 
nected with the Business Men's Club of Fort Edward. He is a high 
up Mason, member of the Blue Lodge and Chapter at Fort Edward, 
of Washington Commandery No. S3, Saratoga Springs, and of the 
Shrine at Troy, N. Y. 

In politics Mr. Carr is a Republican, and is a strong supporter of 
that party. 



.62 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

On September 20, 1883, Mr. Carr married Mary E. Kenyon, and 
they have two children, Hugh B. and Blanche May. Mr. Carr's 
parents were Newton and Elizabeth (Ellithorpe) Carr. He is of 
Scotch-Irish descent, but his ancestors have been American for gener- 
ations. His great grandfather Carr was an Irishman and his mother's 
ancestors were Scotch. 



Michael E. Cushing was born in Sandy Hill, Washington County, 
N. Y., April 9, 1849, and is a son of Patrick and Catherine (Gethings) 
Cushing. 

He was educated in the schools of Sandy Hill, and after leaving 
school, worked at the trade of carpenter until 1874, when he embarked 
in the contracting business, in which he has met with a great deal of 
success. 

In 1887 and '88 he operated a sawmill in connection with his busi- 
ness, and he has done a great deal of work in the building trade in 
Sandy Hill, Glens Falls and vicinity. 

Mr. Cushing married Eliza Joyce, daughter of John and Margaret 
Joyce, and they have one son, Paul M., born November 16, 1895. 

Mr. Cushing is one of the representative business men of Sandy 
Hill, and is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and 
also of the Knights of Columbus and C. M. B. A. 



John W. Chapman was born in the town of Hebron, Washington 
County, N. Y., November 23, 1817, and was educated at the common 
schools in the town of Hartford. He followed the occupation of far- 
mer until twenty-six years of age, when he started in the fruit growing 
business for himself. On January 4, 1843, he married Eliza Huggins, 
of Argyle, and they have a family of four children, namely: William 
J., Janet, James and Sarah J. Mr. Chapman's parents were Spencer 
and Sally (Ward) Chapman. Spencer Chapman was born at Belcher, 
in the town of Hebron, in 1795, ^^'^ was a farmer. His wife, Sally 
Ward, was also born at Belcher, in the town of Hebron, in the year 
1800. John W. Chapman had one brother and one sister, viz: Alfred 
W. and Mary Chapman. Mr. Chapman's grandfather, Ebransessa 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 63 

Chapman, was a native of Massachusetts ; his wife was Mary (Wilson) 
Chapman. Mrs. Chapman's parents were James and Mary Hug-gins. 
They had a family of six children, namely: William, Samuel, Mary 
Ann, Eliza and Lillie. 



Edward C. Collamer was born in the town of Greenwich, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., March 13, 1852, and was educated at the Fort 
Edward Institute, from which he graduated in 1873. After leaving 
school he remained on his father's farm for two years, when he pur- 
chased the farm, living there four years, when he embarked in the 
feed and produce business in Greenwich, which he carried on until 
about 1896, since which time he has been in the feed and mill business. 

On December 25, 1876, Edward C. Collamer married Frances Baker, 
daughter of Richard and Lucinda (File) Baker. They have one 
daughter, Lena B., born November 9, 1878. 

Mr. Collamer is a member of Union Village Lodge, No. 253, I. O. 
O. F., and also of the Encampment, and is a Past Grand in the subor- 
dinate lodge. 

His parents were Foster W. and Sarah J. (Adams) Collamer. 

Mr. Collamer has one brother and one sister, John E. Collamer, of 
Cambridge, N. Y. , and Malinda, wife of W. V. K. Reynolds. 



John Woods Campbell was born in Ireland, December 6, 1874, and 
is a son of Robert and Mary (McRylond) Campbell. He was edu- 
cated in the Greenwich High School, and after leaving that institution 
engaged in farming and dairying, which he has since pursued, and is 
one of the representative farmers of the town of Easton. 

Mr. Campbell has always been a strong Republican, but has never 
aspired to public office. 

On August 3, 1899, John Woods Campbell married Mary Elizabeth 
Johnson, daughter of Henry and Anna (McArthur) Johnson, and they 
have one daughter, Helen Louise Campbell. 

Mr. and Mrs. Campbell are members of the Presbyterian Church. 

Mr. Campbell's ancestors were Scotch, but moved to Ireland on 
account of religious persecution. He traces his ancestry back to the 
Duke of Argyle, whose surname, as is well known, is Campbell. 



64 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Robert C. Davies, M. D., was born in Oneida County, N. Y., Sept. 
20, 1865, and received his early education in the High School at Hol- 
land Patent. He entered the Normal School at Cortland, N. Y., in 1885, 
but transferred to the Oneonta Normal at Oneonta, N. Y., in 1889, 
frotn which he graduated in 1891, after which he taught school for 
three years. In 1894 he entered the Medical College at Albany and 
was graduated from that institution in 1897 with the degree of M. D. 

Dr. Davies first began the practice of his profession at Holland 
Patent, but in November, 1897, removed to Middle Granville and 
established himself permanentl3^ 

Here his ability and success in his profession have already given 
him a high standing, and he enjoys a constantly increasing practice. 

On June 27, 1900, Dr. Davies married Semantha Lapham, only 
daughter of John R. and Ellen (Cook) Staples. 

Dr. Davies takes an active interest in social organizations and is a 
member of the Masonic Lodge, No. 466, in Oneonta, N. Y. , and of 
the South Poultney Court of Foresters, No. 3520. His parents were 
Benjamin and Margaret (Williams) Davies. 



Mrs. Adelia Dougan, daughter of Isaac and Rhoda (Nichols) 
Norton, was born in Granville. Washington County, N. Y., Septem- 
ber 15, 1847. She was educated at the North Granville Academy and 
subsequently taught school for five years. 

On March 21, 1871, she married M. W. Dougan. They had a family 
of three children, namely: Lewis, Alice and Stella. 

M. W. Dougan was born January i, 1840. and died September 16, 
1886. He was born in the town of Thurman, Warren County, N. Y. , 
and was educated at Fort Edward. After leaving school he entered 
the teachers' profession in which he was very successful. He taught 
school for thirty terms in all, and finally retired on account of his 
health, and embarked in farming, which he pursued until the time of 
his death. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 65 

Charles A. Doren, son of James and Arabella ( Francisco ) Doren, 
was born in Whitehall, Washington County, N. Y., in Angust, 1862. 
As soon as his school days were over he entered the employ of D. M. 
Reed, of Bridgeport, Conn., in the carpet department of his depart- 
ment store where he was employed from 1881 to 1883 inclusive. He 
then began an apprenticeship at the building business with J. D. 
Brown and remained with him for three years, when he became 
Superintendent for James Bowler in the building business, which 
position he occupied for one year, when he returned to Whitehall and 
was Superintendent for A. C. Hopson in the building business, for 
about three years. He next moved to Yonkers, where he was con- 
nected in the building trade with Joseph Wilson, but after a short 
time returned to Whitehall and formed a co-partnership with W. J. 
Edmonds, under the firm name of Edmonds & Doren, and this partner- 
ship continiaed from 1891 until 1896, when the firm was dissolved by 
mutual consent, and Mr. Doren has since continued the business 
alone. 

In addition to his contracting business Mr. Doren is also interested 
in the general house furnishing and undertaking business of James 
Doren Sons. This business was established by James Doren, and 
after his death in 1898, he was succeeded by his four sons, namely: 
John J., Charles A., James E. and Fred C. Doren. The establish- 
ment is one of the largest furnishing houses in Washington County, 
and all the members of the firm are noted for their honorable busi- 
ness methods and fair dealings. In this establishment everything 
necessary for the complete furnishing of a house from kitchen to 
alcove can be found, and they have within the year 1900, developed an 
enormous trade in stoves and ranges in which line they are distinctly 
the leaders, their trade extending over a large part of Washington 
County and even into the state of Vermont. 

Charles A. Doren is in every way one of the representative men of 
Washington County. He is a prominent Odd Fellow, a member of 
Whitehall Lodge. No. 5, I. O. O. F., Whitehall Encampment No. 69, 
and Whitehall Canton No. 54 Patriarchs Militant, and was the represen- 
tative from Whitehall to the Grand Lodge in 1897. 

He takes an active interest in the public welfare and advancement 
of Whitehall and held the office of Village Trustee from 1896 to 1898 
inclusive. 

fij 



66 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

On June 22, 1887, Mr. Doren married Alberta, daughter of Johnson 
and Minerva ( Starks ) Osgood. 

Mr. Doren's father, James Doren, was one of the most prominent 
and successful business men of his day in Washington County. He 
was an energetic and progressive business man, and was the founder 
of the splendid business which is today conducted by his sons. He 
came to Whitehall in 1837 from Connecticut and from that date until 
1898, when he died, he was a vital factor in both the commercial and 
public affairs of Washington County. 

In politics he was an unswerving Republican, who stood high in the 
confidence and councils of his party, and who was repeatedly a mem- 
ber of the Republican County Committee, and several times Chairman 
of that body. He held the office of Deputy Sheriff for nine years, the 
very important one of Coroner for six years, and was Deputy Collector 
of Customs at Whitehall for many years. He took a deep interest in 
that most important of all public questions, education, and was for 
nearly thirty years a member of the Board of Education in Whitehall. 
He also took an active interest in the fire department and served as 
Assistant and Chief Engineer for eight years, and in the Order of 
Odd Fellows he was a member of both the Subordinate Lodge and 
the Encampment. 

Indeed, every project or undertaking which had a worthy object in 
view always received his hearty and unstinted support, and the effects 
of his business energy and executive mind will long be both felt and 
observable in Whitehall. 

When he first came to this village he was a lad fifteen years of age, 
possessing only a common school education. He at first entered the 
carpenter's and joiner's trade, with his half-brother, Oliver L. Steere, 
but in 1852 he branched off in the furnishing and undertaking busi- 
ness, and so inaugurated the business which has not only existed, but 
constantly grown for the past forty-eight years, and is today the leader 
in its line in the county. 

In 1846 James Doren married Lovina Francisco, of West Pawlet, Vt., 
who died in 1855, one son, George, surviving her. In 1857 Mr. Doren 
married for his second wife Arabella Francisco, a sister of his former 
wife, and their children are John J., Charles A., Jam^es E. and 
Fred C. 

James E., John J., and Fred C, were associated in business with 
their father, up to the time of his death. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 67 

James Doren was born in Pomfret, Conn., February i6, 1822, and 
died in Whitehall in 1898. 



Michael C. Donehue, proprietor of the Arlington Hotel, White- 
hall, N. Y., is a son of Patrick and Margaret (Quinlan) Donehue, and 
was born in Whitehall, Washington County, N. Y., November 22, 1864. 

His boyhood days were spent in the public school and on the farm, 
until he was fifteen years of age, when he went to work for his brother 
Cornelius in a hotel, and remained with him for three years. He then 
went to Albion, Nebraska, where he engaged in business on his own 
account for three years, when he returned to Fair Haven, and entered 
the service of the Valedo Marble Company, with whom he remained 
two years. He then opened the Lake House in Dresden on his own 
account, and conducted it successfully for eight years. 

In January, 1898, he bought the Arlington Hotel at Whitehall, 
which has become, under his able management, one of the best hotels 
in the village. 

In the summer of 1900 he made an addition 32x32, three stories 
high, to the hotel. The entire building is now 86x34, three stories, 
and has accommodations for one hundred guests. 

On November 21, 1885, Mr. Donehue married Minnie L., daughter 
of Michael and Mary (Lavy) Beckett. They have a family of five 
children, as follows: George C, Edward J., Julian B., Frances M. 
and Mary L. 

Socially Mr. Donehue is an affable and agreeable gentleman, and 
naturally has a large circle of friends. . His father was born in County 
Kerry, Ireland, and his mother in Waterford County, Ireland. 



George H. Deuel was born on the farm where he now resides, in 
the town of Easton, Washington County, N. Y., Januar}- 14, 1845. He 
is a son of George W. and Sarah (Slocum) Deuel. 

He was educated at the Fairfield Seminary, and after leaving' that 
institution, engaged in farming and stock raising, in which he has 
since been engaged with pronounced success. His wife was Etta 



68 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

daughter of Ira and Catherine (Barker) Gifford. The date of their 
marriage was February 26, 1874. They have one child, Anna Deuel. 
Mr. Deuel's ancestors were of English descent, and his wife's people 
originally came from Germany. 



Salmon Dickinson was born in the town of Queensbury, Warren 
County, N. Y., in the year 1840, but passed his early days in Saratoga 
County, where he received his education. 

He settled in Washington County in the year 1851, where he has 
always pursued the occupation of farmer. 

In the year 1865, Salmon Dickinson married Josephine Mead, 
daughter of Stephen Mead, and they have four children, namely: 
Clifford, Samuel, Burt and Maria M. 

Mr. Dickinson's parents were Samuel and Maria (Sherman) 
Dickinson. The family is of English descent. 

Mr. Dickinson is one of the prosperous farmers of Greenwich and 
also does considerable in the dairy business. 



Robert Donahue was born in the town of Greenwich, Washington 
County, N. Y., August 14, 1S58. He began the active work of his 
life as a butcher, with L. H. Meader, with whom he remained for 
seven years, after which he was with H. S. Harrington for four years. 
He then formed a partnership with L. H. Meader, the firm being 
Meader & Donahue. This partnership existed for two years, when 
Mr. Donahue sold out and worked for Daniel Callahan for five years, 
after which he was associated with George Foster for three years. In 
1893 he entered the employ of W. L. Sprague, with whom he has 
since remained and for whom he is now manager. 

On October 8, 1879, Mr. Donahue married Sarah E. Randall, 
daughter of David S. Randall, and they have two children, namely: 
William, born September 2, 1881, and Lewis, born August 13, 1882. 

Mrs. Donahue's people came from England to the United States 
many years ago. Her branch of the family finally settled in Oswego 
County, N. Y. , which is her native place. 

Mr. Donahue's father, David Donahue, was a native of Ireland, ■ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 69 

who came to America in 1850, living two years in New York City and 
then settling- in Washington County, N. Y., in 1852. His mother was 
Mary E. ( Irwin ) Donahue. 

Mr. Donahue is an energetic and progressive man who takes an 
active interest in local affairs. In politics he is a Democrat. He was 
Trustee of the village of Greenwich for five years and is a member of 
Union Village Lodge, No. 253, I. O. O. F. 



Clayton N. Davis, one of the prominent manufacturers of Wash- 
ington County, and the only one in his line, was born at Hartford, 
this county, and was educated at the Fort Edward Institute. In 187 1 
he went to Troy and embarked in the shirt manufacturing business 
with his father in that city. This business they conducted success- 
fully from the start, and in 1880 removed their headquarters to Fort 
Edward. Two years subsequently, in 1882, C. N. Davis assumed the 
entire business, and has since conducted the enterprise alone. 

In 1893 Mr. Davis extended the scope of his business, and since that 
date has manufactured not only collars and cuffs, but also shirts and 
ladies' shirt waists. The importance of this enterprise and the quality 
of the work done by this house, are well indicated by the fact that the 
establishment, which employs seventy-five operatives, is continually 
taxed to its utmost capacity to keep up with its orders. Mr. Davis 
exercises a personal supervision over every department of the busi- 
ness, which inspires the gratifying success of the enterprise. 

On December 21, 1875, Mr. Davis married Lucy Groesbeck, and 
they have a family of four children, namely: Anna Elizabeth, Fred- 
erick K., May Ida and Richard C. 

Mr. Davis' parents were Russell C. and Elizabeth Ann (Covell) 
Davis. His mother was a daughter of General William Covell, a vet- 
eran of the War of 181 2. Her brother, Dr. Charles H. Covell, was a 
surgeon in the War of the Rebellion, and died in the navy. His 
father, Russell C. Davis, died in 1894. 

Mr. Davis is a member of the Masonic fraternity, is a highly popu- 
lar citizen of Fort Edward, and one of the successful and progressive 
business men of Washington County. He was elected Trustee of the 
village of Fort Edward in March, 1900. 



70 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Fred A. Davis was born in the town of Horicon, Warren County, 
N. Y., March 15, 1863, but has resided in Fort Edward since three 
years of age. Here he was educated, and here he has passed his busi- 
ness life, which has always been in the news line. He was employed 
b}' C. W. Bcwtell for five years, and in 1881 succeeded to the business, 
and also became manager for the Western Union Telegraph Company, 
and both of these interests he looks after with ability and success, in 
the PostofFice building, Fort Edward. 

Mr. Davis is enterprising and progressive, and is always in touch 
with the affairs of his town and county. He is a member of the Sat- 
terlee Hose Company, and has been its Treasurer for several years ; 
also, member of the A. O. U. W., in which he has been District Dep- 
uty Grand Master Workman, and is a member of the B. P. O. E. He 
held the office of Treasurer of the village of Fort Edward for two 
terms. 

On February 16, 1887, Fred A. Davis married Margaret Armsb)', 
daughter of Edward and Mary Armsby. Their children are Fred A., 
Jr., born June 18, 1890, and Kathryn, born October 21, 1893. 

Mr. Davis' parents were Milo and Harriet E. (Shedd) Davis. Milo 
Davis is of Hinesburg, Vt., and his wife is of Rutland, Vt. The 
family is of Welch descent. Three brothers came over to America. 
One settled in the South, one in the West, and one in Massachusetts, 
and the latter was the progenitor of the subject of this biography. 

Mr. Davis has been Chairman of the Legislative Committee of the 
State Firemen's Association for two years. 



George S. Devine, the popular and well known under sheriff of 
Washington County, was born in the town of Kingsbury, N. Y., Feb- 
ruary 2, 1853. He was educated at the district schools and the Fort 
Edward Institute, and his father being a farmer, he followed this 
occupation until 1884, when he embarked in the grocery and meat 
business. In this department of trade he was engaged until 1889, 
when he engaged in the livery business, which he has since continued 
to conduct. 

In politics Mr. Devine has been a life-long Republican, active in 
the interests of his party and has acted as delegate and as county 
committeeman several times. He was appointed deputy sheriff at 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 71 

Sandy Hill in 1898. His one society is the Masonic, of which he has 
long been a member. 

In 1879 George S. Devine married Althea A. Broughton of Kings- 
bury, N. Y. They have one adopted daughter, Adelaide A. Devine. 
Mr. Devine's parents were Seth and Margaret ( Griffin ) Devine. 
Seth Devine was a native of Dutchess County, and is still living on his 
farm in the town of Kingsbury, Washington County, N. Y., an active 
and enterprising farmer. He settled on this farm in 1850. His wife 
was a native of Warren County and died in Washington County in 
1878. 

Man)^ generations of the Devine family lived in Dutchess County 
near Washington Hollow, where the name and fainily are well 
known. 



David Dunsmore was born at Lake George, Warren County, N. 
Y.. June 7, 1 86 1. He was educated at the Fort Edward Institute, 
and has always been a farmer by occupation, which he has pursued 
both in the town of Fort Edward and Kingsbury, where he now 
resides. 

Mr. Dunsmore is a Republican in politics and has held some town 
offices. He is also a member of the Washington County Agricultural 
Society. 

On December 25, 1889, David Dunsmore married Sarah E. Ward, 
and they have two children, namely: Elspie E. and Jeanette K. 
Dunsmore. 

Mr. Dunsmore's parents were David and Elspie (Johnston) Duns- 
more. Elspie Johnston came from Dumfreith, near Edinburgh, 
Scotland. She was born in 1820 and died January 19, 1900.- In com- 
ing to America she first stopped at Long Island, but later moved to 
Lake George. 

David Dunsmore came from Glasgow, Scotland. He was born in 
1813 and came to this country in 1841, when twenty-eight years of 
age. He located on a farm at Lake George. He married Elspie 
Johnston in 1842 and they resided at Lake George until 1867, when 
they removed to Kingsbury and settled on the present Dunsmore 
homestead. They had a family of seven sons and two daughters, five 
of whom are now living. David Dunsmore died in 1874. 



72 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Jesse D. Foster was born in the town of Hebron, Washington 
County, N. Y., January 17, 1866, and was educated in the West 
Hebron Academy. 

He has been a farmer all his life, and is one of the representative 
agriculturists of the town of Hebron. 

On January 26, 1897, Jesse D. Foster married Carrie Joyce. 

Mr. Foster's parents were Andrew and Alzina Foster. 



Martin H. Chamberlin was born in Fort Ann, Washington Coun- 
ty, N. Y., January 21, 1842. His parents were Curtis and Anna 
(Heirlbert) Chamberlin. Mr. Chamberlin was educated in the dis- 
trict schools and after spending some time lumbering, he embarked in 
the occupation of farming, which he has since pursued. 

Mr. Chamberlin married Sarah Early, daughter of Henry and 
Hannah Early in 1866. In 1862 he enlisted in Company A, 118th 
Regiment, New York State Volunteers and served three years in the 
Civil War. 



John Edgerton was born in the town of Hebron, Washington 
County, N. Y., May 17, 1851, and is a son of Ariel and Martha L. 
(Morrow) Edgerton. He was educated in the district schools and has 
always followed the occupation of farming and dairying. 

Mr. Edgerton is one of the prominent men of the town of Easton, 
and is a Republican in politics. He has served as Town Auditor for 
three years, and is a member of Ashlar Lodge No. 584, F. & A. M., 
at Greenwich. He is also a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 

On February 24, 1874, John Edgerton married Florence Maynard, 
daughter of Israel and Abigail Maynard. They have a family of four 
children, namely: Ralph W., Ina B., P. Russell and F. Beatrice. 

Mr. Edgerton's family is of English descent. His great grand- 
father, Benjamin Edgerton, was a captain in the war of 181 2, and 
John Edgerton's half-brother, Benjamin Edgerton, was a soldier in 
the War of the Rebellion and was killed in battle. 

Mr. Edgerton has a fine and well cultivated farm, which is well 
known all over this part of the state as the Willow Brook Stock Farm. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 73 

Sherman W. Fitch, agent of the National Express Company at 
Whitehall, is a son of Albert and Carrie (Towner) Fitch and was born 
at Crown Point, N. Y., Jnly ii, 1864. He was educated in the public 
schools of Port Henry and Middlebury, Vermont, and after complet- 
ing his schooling he went to work for his uncle, Merrill Bingham, 
upon a farm, where he remained for about seven years. He then 
went to Mineville and went to work in the capacity of clerk for H. G. 
Burleigh & Brother, and remained there two years. At this time they 
sold out and he came to Whitehall and continued in the employment 
of the firm for a short time, when he secured a position as brakesman 
on the D. & H. railroad, but, not liking the work, resigned this posi- 
tion after four months and went into the freight house as night 
clerk. He acted as night clerk for three months, when he returned 
to the employment of H. G. Burleigh & Brother, and went to Ticon- 
deroga where he worked for six months, when he again returned to 
the freight house" of the D. & H. Railroad in Whitehall. Shortly 
after this he accepted a position with the National Express Company 
as driver, and in March, 1898, was made agent for the company at 
Whitehall, which position he still occupies. 

Mr. Fitch married Anna B., daughter of A. D. Wait, of Sandy Hill. 
They have two children, namely: Day B. R., born February 18, 1891, 
and Robert C, born January 4, 1896. Mr. Fitch is a member of 
Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., and Whitehall Encampment No. 
69, I. O. O. F. 



Charles H. Fullerton was born in the town of Argyle, Washing- 
ton County, May 18, 1852, and was educated at the Argyle Academy. 
When twenty years of age, in 1872, he left school and began farming 
with his father. On January 9, 1884, he married Margaret C. Cherry, 
of East Greenwich, N. Y., who was a graduate of the Salem Academy. 
Both ]\Ir. and Mrs. Fullerton are members of the LTnited Presbyterian 
Church at Argyle. Mr. Fullerton has held the office of Inspector of 
Election many times. 

Mr. Fullerton's parents were Charles T. and Agnes E. (Livingston) 
Fullerton. Charles T. Fullerton was born in vSaratoga County in the 
year 1805, and his wife in 181 2. He was engaged in the hardware 
business in Troy from 1825 to 1835, when he moved to the town of 

[J] 



74 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Argyle, Washing'ton County, and pursued farming during the remain- 
der of his life. His father, Alexander Fullerton, was born in Hebron, 
N. Y. , in 1776. He married Mary E. Taylor, who was a native of 
Schenectady County. 

Charles H. Fullerton is one of the representative men of Argyle, 
and is highly respected. 



James M. Ferris was born in the town of Kingsbury, Washington 
County, N. Y. , July 18, i860, and was educated in the High School at 
Sandy Hill. At the age of twenty he began working for the Allen 
Brothers Company, and has been connected with them from that time 
up to the present. He has held various positions, gradually rising 
until in the spring of 1884 he became superintendent of shipping for 
Allen Brothers Company. He has been connected with this depart- 
ment for sixteen years. 

Mr. Ferris is a member of the Royal Arcanum, and has held all the 
offices in that organization, and is Treasurer of the Sandy Hill Lodge 
at present. 

In 1883 James M. Ferris married Adeline Van Wormer, and they 
have one daughter, Helen Ferris. 

James M. Ferris is a son of Lyman R. and Minerva A. (Miller) 
Ferris. Lyman R. Ferris was a native of Comstocks, Washington 
County, and was a son of Cyrus Ferris. 



EvANDER M. Finch was born in the town of Whitehall, Washington 
County, N. Y., February 6, 1872. He attended the public schools of 
Whitehall and completed his education at the Whitehall High School, 
from which he was graduated in the class of '91. 

Mr. Finch has been engaged in the dairy business all his business 
life, and has associated with him his brother, John M. Finch, the firm 
name being Finch Brothers. They are leading dairymen in this part, 
of the state, keeping a herd of fifty-two cows, and delivering three 
hundred quarts of milk daily. This business was established in 1892, 
and their dairy farm comprises 700 acres of land. 

Although quite a young man, Mr. Finch is one of the representative 
men of Washington County, and is at present Supervisor for the town 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 75 

of Whitehall. In the fall of iqoo he was placed in nomination by the 
Democratic party for the office of Sheriff, but naturally shared the 
fate of the whole Democratic ticket in this strong Republican county, 
in a presidential year. 

Mr. Finch is also a prominent society man, and is a meinber of 
Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M., Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. 
F., AVhitehall Encampment No. 69, I. O. O. F., and Whitehall 
Canton No. 54, Patriarchs Militant. He is also a member of Steamer 
Company No. 3, and an honorary member of Torrent Engine Com- 
pany. He is also a prominent member of the Y. M. C. A., and is 
highly popular with the young men of Whitehall. 

Mr. Finch's parents were Henry M. and Martha J. (Douglass) Finch. 
His father was born at Sand Lake, Rensselaer County, and died at 
Whitehall the nth of July, 1894. His mother was a native of Wash- 
ington County. Mr. Finch has one brother, John M., and one sister, 
Beulah, who is the wife of A. G. Greenough. His grandfather was 
John Finch, and the family is of English origin. 

Mr. Finch is an enterprising, progressive and highly popular man, 
who has many friends in all parts of Washington County. 



Hon. James E. Goodman, son of Origin and Tryphosa (Murrill) 
Goodman, was born June 3, 1832, at Bolton, Warren County, N. Y. 
He received his preliminary education at the schools of his native vil- 
lage, and at the age of seventeen he entered the State Normal School 
at Albany, from which he was graduated in the spring of 1852. After 
leaving the Normal School he taught the village school at Fishkill 
Landing for six months, and afterwards one term at Ovid, Seneca 
County, N. Y. From Ovid he went to Nyack, Rockland County, N. 
Y. , where he had charge of a large school for six months, at the expi- 
ration of which time he resigned, to become principal in the twelfth 
ward school, in the City of Troy. In this position he succeeded his 
brother, Darwin E. Goodman, who died at that time. He occupied 
the position of principal of this school for two years, when ill health 
compelled him to resign, and in this way he severed his connection 
with the teaching profession. 

He next entered a drug store in Troy, and later became a partner 
in the business, but after spending two years in this enterprise, he 



76 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

went to Fort Ann and engag-ed in farming, principally with the hope 
of benefiting his health. He remained on the farm until 1865, when 
he sold out and bought another farm in the town of Hartford, N. Y., 
upon which he lived until 1884. In that year the Farmers National 
Bank of Granville was organized, and Mr. Goodman, who had been 
active in promoting the enterprise, was elected its first President, and 
he has held the office ever since. 

In 1888 he settled permanently in Granville, and has since devoted 
his attention principally to banking. The Farmers National Bank 
has been very prosperous, under his able management, and has a sur- 
plus of $20,000, over and above its capital stock of $50,000. 

Hon. James E. Goodman has been a success in more departments 
of life than generally fall to the lot of man. He has been not only a 
successful teacher, farmer and banker, but has taken a prominent 
part in the public affairs of Washington County, and in politics he is 
a staunch Republican and a firm believer in the principle of protection. 

He represented the town of Hartford, N. Y., on the Board of Super- 
visors from 1874 to 1879, and was a member of the State Assembly in 
1 88 1. Although he has not recently accepted any public office, he is 
a strong factor in local politics and stands high in the counsels of 
his party. 

In 1856 Mr. Goodman married Ellen Humphries, of Troy, N. Y., 
who died in 1858, leaving one son, Darwin E. Goodman. In i860 Mr. 
Goodman married Sarah E. Beecher, daughter of Deacon Beecher, of 
the village of Granville. They have a family of five children, namely : 
Jessie E., who married Clayton E. Gates; Mary B., Silas B., James 
E., Jr., and Sarah F. 

The Goodman family in America dates from the year 1620, when 
John and William Goodman, two brothers, came over in the May- 
flower, landed at Plymouth Rock and settled in Massachusetts. 

Hon. James E. Goodman is a direct descendant of William Good- 
man. Eleazer Goodman, grandfather of Hon. James E. Goodman, 
was a native of South Hadley, Mass., but settled in Warren County, 
N. Y., about the year 1785. He lived to be a very old man and died 
in the town of Bolton, Warren County, N. Y. He was a farmer, and 
his son. Origin Goodman, father of Hon. James E. Goodman, was 
born at South Hadley, Mass., in 1784. He also was a farmer, and 
served as a soldier in the War of 181 2, reaching the front after the 
Battle of Plattsburgh had been fought. He died May 7, 1847, in 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 77 

the sixty-third year of his age. He was quite a prominent man in his 
town and held various local offices. His wife, Tryphosa Murrill, was a 
native of Hartford, N. H., and a daughter of William Murrill. They 
reared a family of eleven children, two sons and nine daughters. 
Mrs. Goodman survived her husband nearly a quarter of a century, 
dying in 1871, at the age of eighty-two j^ears. Both she and her hus- 
band were members of the Presbyterian Church, and it is said of her 
that "in her character she exemplified all the virtues and graces of 
true Christian womanhood." 

William Murrill, grandfather of Hon. James E. Goodman, was 
pressed into the British service, under General Burgoyne, and was cap- 
tured by the American forces at Saratoga, at the time of Burgoyne 's 
surrender. After securing his passports to return home on account 
of his youth, being only sixteen years old, he changed his mind, 
enlisted in the American army and served until the close of the Revo- 
lutionary War. He died in the town of Hartford, Washington County, 
N. Y., at a ripe old age. His wife, whose surname was Williams, was 
a direct descendant of Roger Williams, the famous dissenter, who 
was banished from Massachusetts in 1636, and subsequently founded 
the colony of Rhode Island. 

From this narrative, it will be seen that the Goodman fainily is not 
only one of the oldest in America, but has played an important part 
in building up and maintaining the character of institutions which 
make this country great. The history of the family and its branches 
is interwoven with the history of the country since the landing of the 
Mayflower, and members of the family on both sides have come to 
the front in all the great epochs that have occurred since then. 



Alfred C. Gif.bs was born at Ticonderoga, N. Y., June 13, 1842, 
and was educated at the common schools in the town of Hartford and 
at the Albany Business College. He was reared on a farm and 
remained there until the beginning of the War of the Rebellion when 
he enlisted as a private in Company F., 93d Regiment, New York 
State Veteran Volunteers. This was in 1861, and he served until the 
end of the war in 1865, and during his service was promoted to Com- 
missary Sergeant. There were four other brothers in the war at the 



78 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

same time with Mr. Gibbs. He is a member of Post N. F. Wier No. 
453, G. A. R., at Hartford, N. Y., and also of the Baptist church. 

Mr. Gibbs takes an active interest in all local affairs and everything" 
pertaining- to the welfare of his town and county, and has held the 
office of Town Collector of Taxes, and is at present Highway Com- 
missioner for the town. 

In 1870 Mr. Gibbs married Mary A. Robinson of Albany, N. Y., 
and their children are Mary M., Howard, Arthur, George A., Nor- 
man D. and Edna. Mr. Gibbs' parents were Noah Z. , and Mar}'- M. 
(Converse) Gibbs. Noah Z. Gibbs was born in Cornwall, Vermont, 
March 24, 1802. He settled in Hartford, N. Y., in 1845, and died at 
his homestead in 1894, at the age of 92 years and nine months. He 
raised a family of ten children, six sons and four daughters and five 
of these sons served in the War of the Rebellion, namely: Theron Z. 
Gibbs, Stephen C. Gibbs, A. Judson Gibbs, John Byron Gibbs and 
Alfred C. Gibbs. 

Theron Z. Gibbs, M. D., was born at Cornwall, Vermont, and was 
a Surgeon in the 15th New York Engineer Regiment. He served 
through the war and was mustered out in June, 1865, with his regi- 
ment. After the war he practiced medicine and surg-ery in Fort Ann 
until 1897, when he was killed at that place by the cars. He was aged 
seventy years. 

Stephen C. Gibbs was born at Ticonderoga, N. Y., October 31, 
1828. He enlisted in the 93d New York State Veteran Volunteers in 
November, 1861, and was mustered out in 1862 for disability. He 
resides in Fort Ann at present. 

A. Judson Gibbs was born at Ticonderoga, N. Y. , December i, 
1831, and enlisted from Hartford, N. Y., November 10, 1861. in the 
93d New York State Volunteers and served throughout the war and 
received his honorable discharge June 28, 1865, from the hospital at 
York, Pa., on account of wounds. 

John Byron Gibbs was born at Ticonderoga, N. Y., May 5, 1835. 
He enlisted in the 96th New York Vohmteers and was discharged for 
disability in 1862 at Yorktown, Va. He died in Shepherd, Mich., in 
1868, from the effects of his military service. He was thirty-three 
.years of age at the time of his death. 

Noah Z. Gibbs also had a son-in-law, Levi Matthews, who served 
in a Vermont regiment, and who died at the battle of Fredericksburg, 
Virginia, December, 1862, from exposure. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 79 

Albert C. Getten. The subject of this sketch, who is one of the 
oldest paper bag makers in the United States, and Superintendent 
for The Union Bag & Paper Company at Sandy Hill, N. Y. , was born 
in Genesee County, N. Y. , June ist, 1841, and was educated at 
LeRoy in his native county. 

At the age of sixteen years he went to Beloit, Wisconsin, where he 
learned the printer's trade. On August 15, 1862, he enlisted in Com- 
pany B, 2 2d Wisconsin Infantr}^ and participated in all the operations 
of his regiment until captured with the balance of his brigade (Gen- 
eral Coburn's) at Thompson's Station, or Spring Hill, Tenn., March 
5, 1863. He was taken to Libby Prison, Richmond, Va., btit was paroled 
April I, 1863. and subsequently exchanged. He was with General 
Sherman from Chattanooga to Atlanta, to Savannah, to Galesboro, 
and participated in the grand review at Washington, D. C, at the 
close of the war. 

He received his honorable discharge July 12, 1865. After being 
mustered out, he resumed his trade of printer, beginning his duties 
September 20, 1865, in the employ of the Rock River Paper Company 
as Superintendent of their printing department. This company was 
the western agent for the then new article, paper flour sacks. He 
remained with this house two years and then became Superintendent 
for Wheeler & Heinman, manufacturers of paper bags, and remained 
with them during the several changes of that firm. 

When the Union Bag 8z Paper Company was formed he became a 
stockholder in the company, and on September 4, 1892, he came to 
Sandy Hill, N. Y., to superintend the removal of the Union Bag & 
Paper Company's plant from Chicago to this place. 

On March i, 1899, ^^e Union Bag & Paper Company was re-organ- 
ized, and Mr. Getten became General Superintendent of bag machines 
for its several plants. This position he still occupies and fills with 
marked ability and success. He is not only an expert in the art of 
printing, but is also an inventor of note, and has originated and 
patented several different improvements in the manufacture of paper 
bags. 

Notwithstanding the large interests under his supervision, Mr. 
Getten takes a lively interest in public affairs, and is President of the 
Board of Health for the village of Sandy Hill. He is also Coinmander 
of G. A. R. Post, William M. Collin, No. 587; a member of the 
Ancient Order of United Workmen, and of the Kniuhts of Honor. 



80 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

On Decembr 26, 1865, Mr. Getten married Julia A. Smith, of Beloit, 
Wisconsin, and they have five sons, namely: Frederick J., Edward 
W., Ira C, Ernest A., and Francis W. 

Mr. Getten's parents were John and Betsey (Chappie) Getten. They 
were natives of England, but came to this country in 1835, ^^^ 
settled in Genesee County, N. Y. 



Leander Gilchrist was born in South Hartford May 4, 1849, and 
was educated at the South Hartford Academy, from which he gradu- 
ated in March, 1870. He is one of the representative farmers in the 
town of Hartford, and is a member of Herschell Lodge No. 505, F. & 
A. M., of North Hartford. On January i, 1880, Mr. Gilchrist married 
Minerva L. Townsend, of South Hartford, and they have one daughter, 
Helen L. Gilchrist. Mr. Gilchrist's parents were Andrew and Juliette 
(Davis) Gilchrist. Andrew Gilchrist was born in County Monahan, 
Ireland, in 181 2, and came to America in 1824. He died August 
17, 1899. 

Mrs. Gilchrist was born in the town of Hartford, February 16, 1846. 
Mrs. Gilchrist's parents were Calvin J. and Clarissa (Burch) Town- 
send. Calvin J. Townsend was born in the town of Hartford, March 
22, 1812, and his wife, Clarissa, was born in the town of Hebron, 
Washington County, April 12, 181 6. 

From these dates it will be seen that families on both sides have 
been identified with the history of Washington County through almost 
the entire nineteenth century. 



Carmi Goodman. — The subject of this sketch, who is one of the 
best known and most popular men in Washington County, was born 
in the town of Fort Ann, in 1858, and received his education in the 
common schools of his native place. He has always followed agricul- 
tural pursuits, and, together with his brother, James D. Goodman, 
owns and manages the widely known and prosperous Wray Farm. In 
addition to being a successful farmer, Mr. Goodman has also taken a 
deep interest in public affairs, and everything tending toward the 
advancement and welfare of his town, or the county, has always 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 81 

elicited his strong- support. He is also one of the prominent politi- 
cians of the county and has held many public offices, among them that 
of Supervisor for the town of Fort Ann, an office which he now holds 
and honors. He is also Master of the local Grange, and both in 
public and private life is highly respected, and holds the confidence 
of all classes. 

Mr. Goodman is a scion of one of the oldest families in the town of 
Fort Ann, both his parents having been born in this town. Their 
names were Origin and Mary Goodman. 



Tames K. Gillis was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., August 17. 1831, and was educated in the common 
schools and Argyle Academy, from which he was graduated in the 
year 1S51. After leaving school he took up the trade of carpenter 
and joiner, which he followed for three years, or until 1854, when he 
started farming in the town of Argyle. In this occupation he passed 
his life until the year 1890, when he retired. 

He is a member of both the Masonic fraternity and the Odd Fel- 
lows. He joined the Masons in 1862 and the Odd Fellows in 1851. 

In politics Mr. Gillis has always been a consistent Democrat and was 
a member of the County Committee for nine years, namely: from 
1868 to 1877. 

Mr. Gillis' parents were John and Mary (King) Gillis. John Gillis 
was born in the town of Argyle and was a son of Alexander Gillis, 
who was one of the early settlers of the town. He died September 
24, 1837. Mr. Gillis' great grandfather was James Gillis, who was 
born in Argyle, Scotland. 

Mr. Gillis has been an ardent horseman all his life, and was for 
many years one of the best horseback riders in the state. 



Horace H. Gavette was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., in the year 1846, and was educated at Greenwich 
Academy, from which he graduated 1866. After working on the farm 
for a year, and following the business of auctioneer for some time, he 



82 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

finally embarked in the grocery business in 1878 at Thompson's, but 
also continued his interest in farming. 

On December 31, 1869, Mr. Gavette married Carrie Lewis, and they 
have one son, Fred, who was born December 20, 1870, and is now a 
clerk in his father's store. 

Mr. Gavette takes a prominent part in public affairs and held the 
office of Deputy Sheriff under James Robinson for one term. He is a 
member of Ashlar Lodge No. 584, F. & A. M. 

Mr. Gavette's parents were Horace and Emily (Rouse) Gavette. 
Horace Gavette was a native of Argyle. Emily, his wife, is still liv- 
ing, at the age of eighty-three years. 

Mr. Gavette's grandfather, John Gavette, came from Rhode Island, 
and his grandmother, Mabelle (Heath) Gavette, was a native of Green- 
wich. His grandfather, on his mother's side, Joseph Rouse, settled 
in Washington County in 1779, and married Lydia Beadle. 



George Gifford, son of Elisha H. and Anna N. (Hoag) Gifford, 
was born in the town of Easton, Washington County, N. Y., Decem- 
ber 8, 1 85 1, and was educated at the Marshall Seminary. 

He remained on the farm until 1875, when he engaged in farming 
on his own account, and has since followed this vocation. For five 
years of this period, however, he was engaged in the manufacture 
of cheese. 

Mr. Gifford is a Socialist in politics, and is a man who follows the 
course of political events closely, and takes an earnest interest in the 
cause of education. He was a Trustee of his School District for a 
number of terms. 

On February 11, 1875, George Gifford married A. Estelle, daughter 
of Samuel and Angeline (Burch) Buckley, and they have a family of 
eight children, namely: Howard, Frederick, Adella, Arthur, George 
H., Leslie, Allen and Clayton. 

Mr. Gifford is one of the successful farmers of the town of Easton. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 83 

John Phillip Graulich was born in the Grand Duchy of Hesse, 
Germany, October 31, 1831. He was educated in his native country, 
and after leaving school entered an office as clerk, remaining two 
years. He then served three years' apprenticeship at the tailor's 
trade, and worked as a journeyman tailor until June 13, 1859, when 
he landed in New York, where he worked at his trade until 1861, 
when he enlisted in the 20th New York Volunteer Infantry, and 
served his adopted country in the army ef the Union for two years. 
He then returned to New York, where he resumed his trade and fol- 
lowed it until 1868, when he removed to Whitehall, where he entered 
the service of Waite Brothers, as a cutter in their tailoring establish- 
ment. He remained with this firm for a period of four years, when 
he engaged in the Merchant Tailoring business on his own account, 
and in which he has been very successful. He also carries a large 
line of gent's furnishing goods, along with his regular tailoring busi- 
ness. In May, 1864, Mr. Graulich inarried Elizabeth Meehel, and 
their children are: George, John P., Jr., Othelia, Emma and Amelia. 

Mr. Graulich is an elder in the Presbyterian Church, and a member 
of Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M., as well as of G. A. Tanner Post 
G. A. R. In politics he is a Republican, but has never aspired to 
public oiTfice. He is a thoroughgoing and successful business man 
and has many friends. 



James G. Gillis was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., January 22, 1834, and came to Salein with his parents 
in 1838. Here he was reared on the farm and educated in the com- 
mon schools, and has followed the occupation of farming all his life. 

In 1850 James Gillis married Elizabeth Boyd, who died, leaving one 
son, John R. Gillis. In 1857 Mr. Gillis married for his second wife, 
Anna L. Brown, and they have had a family of four children, namely: 
Elizabeth, Margaret, Charles B. and Anna, deceased. 

James G. Gillis is a son of James and Lucy (Safford) Gillis. The 
family is of Scotch origin. 

Mr. Gillis is a prosperous and highly esteemed gentleman and is a 
member of the Presbyterian Church. 

In politics he is a Republican and has been Assessor of the town 
four different terms. 



84 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

GusTAvus A. Griswold, son of Alfred H. and Sarah (Wright) 
Griswold, was born in the town of Whitehall, Washington County, N. 
Y., July 25, 1853. He attended the schools of Whitehall and Poultney, 
Vermont, and graduated from the Albany Business College in 187 1. 
Immediately after graduating he entered the First National Bank of 
Whitehall, of which his father was President, as teller and assistant 
cashier, and remained in this position for nine years. He then went 
to Columbus, Ohio, where he remained some time and thence to 
Oregon to accept a position with the Union Pacific Express Company, 
with whom he remained for four years. He then returned to White- 
hall and embarked in the millinery business, in which he is still 
engaged, assisted by his amiable wife. They have built up the largest 
and most popular millinery trade in Whitehall. 

On May 22, 1888, he married Harriet E., daughter of John and 
Harriet Lace. They have two children, Gustavus A., Jr., and Orissa C. 

Mr. Griswold is a prominent member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, 
I. O. O. F. ; Whitehall Encampment No. 69, I. O. O. F., and Phoenix 
Lodge, No. 96, F. & A. M. He is also a member of the Presbyterian 
Church. 

Mr. Griswold's father, Alfred H. Griswold, was the first president, 
and the only one, of the Commercial Bank at Whitehall, which posi- 
tion he held from the organization of the bank until 1862, when that 
institution was closed and the First National Bank was started. He 
was then President of the First National Bank until 1879. He was 
one of Whitehall's most prominent and able business men. He died 
December 3, 1888. 



Mrs. H. Cornelia (Simpson) Gilbert was born in Cambridge, 
Washington County, N. Y., and was educated at the Cambridge 
Academy and at Mrs. Willard's Female Seminary, Troy, N. Y., 
which has become famous through having graduated so many young 
ladies who have in after life occupied positions of importance in their 
community or have become wives of prominent men. 

In 1869 H. Cornelia Simpson married William Stanley Gilbert, a 
successful manufacturer of Cohoes, N. Y., who was known as a 
sterling business man as well as a man of culture and education. 

In 1863 William Stanley Gilbert enlisted as Sergeant in Compan)' 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 86 

D., 49th Massachusetts Regiment, and was the fourth man from his 
regiment who volunteered to join the forlorn hope which was to pre- 
pare for and lead the attack on Fort Hudson on the 4th of July, 1863' 
The duties of some of the volunteers were to bridge the ditch in front 
of the enemies' parapet or breastworks with fascines and then return. 
Others were to rush across the bridge thus made and assault the 
enemy with the bayonet. The ditch was fifteen feet wide and twelve 
feet deep, and over 2,000 men from the forty regiments composed 
the forlorn hope. All the odds were against them and none but the 
bravest would volunteer to go forth and face almost certain death or 
the repulse which seemed sure to come. 

Sergeant Gilbert miraculously went through the charge and retreat 
which lasted twenty-four hours, and he escaped without any injury. 
The 49th was mustered out of service September i. 1863, and had 
been in more active conflicts than two-thirds of the regiments that 
remained in the service for the full four years. 

The hardships and vicissitudes of the campaign had their effect 
upon Mr. Gilbert's health and he was never strong after the many 
trials and experiences incident to the war. He died in August, 1885. 

Mrs. H. Cornelia (Simpson) Gilbert is a daughter of Nelson R. 
Simpson and Mary (Crocker) Simpson. Her grandfather on her 
mother's side was Benjamin Crocker, who was one of the early elders 
of the Presbyterian Church, commonly known as the " old white meet- 
ing house." He was also a most prominent and influential man. He 
was a member of the Legislature in 1849, and was an active, public 
spirited citizen. 

Mrs. Gilbert's great-grandfather, Eleazer Crocker, was one of the 
earliest settlers in the town of Cambridge, Washington County. He 
served with distmction during the Revolutionary War as a Lieutenant. 
Her father. Nelson R. Simpson, was born in Cambridge, N. Y., -and 
was a son of David and Rachael (Reed) Simpson. He, too, was a 
highly respected citizen and an elder in the Presbyterian Chnrch. 

The Crocker family came originally from Devonshire, England. 
Sir John Crocker accompanied King Henry on his expeditions during 
the French War as cup-bearer and standard bearer. King Henry 
gave him a cup for his crest, a fac simile of which Mrs. Gilbert now 
has in her possession. 

Benj. Crocker's sons were: First — N. S. Prime Crocker, who moved 
to western New York, and was a Drominent and siiccessful business 



86 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

man. Second — B. Porter Crocker, who remained in Cambridge, where 
he was a man of influence and passed his life in business. He was 
postmaster at Cambridge for eighteen years and was one of the foun- 
ders of the Cambridge Valley National Bank, of which he was a direc- 
tor and vice-president for years. He helped to organize the Wood- 
lawn Cemetery Association and was its President at the time of his 
death. Third — R. King Crocker, a lawyer, and eleven years the editor 
and proprietor of the Washington County Post, represented his dis- 
trict in the Assembly. He had one son, B. David Crocker, who is 
now a broker in Walla Wall, Washington, and is well known as a 
financier on the Pacific Coast. Fourth — Rev. James Crocker, who was 
a Presbyterian minister and for many years Synodical Superin- 
tendent of the Presbyterians for the state of New York. He resided 
in Saratoga Springs, N. Y., and had three children, Elizabeth McH., 
Anna Mary, and James N., who married Mary L. Swazey. 

Benjamin Crocker's daughters were: First — Mary W. , who married 
Nelson Simpson. Her children were: H. Cornelia, the subject of this 
sketch, Mary Frances, wife of Alexander M. Sherman, and Annie H., 
deceased. Second, Celinda A., unmarried. Third, Harriet M., who 
married Hon. F. Juliand of Greene, N. Y. 



George F. Ingalls was born in the town of Dresden, Washington 
County, N. Y., November ii, 1846, and is a son of John and Polly 
(Bartholomew) Ingalls. He was educated at the North Granville 
Academy, and after leaving school, took up the trade of carpenter 
during the summer months and taught school during the winter 
months for sixteen years. 

He moved to North Granville in the year 1864, where he pursued 
the business of contractor. From Granville he went to Whitehall and 
continued the same business until i88i, when he went west to 
Nebraska, where he was engaged in contracting and speculating. 
While in Nebraska he was appointed Postmaster at McCool Junction, 
Nebraska, which office he held for two years under President Harri- 
son, when he resigned. 

In the year 1891 Mr. Ingalls returned east and settled in Dresden 
on his present farm. He now occupies the office of Justice of the 
Peace. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 87 

On April 26, 187 1, George F. Ingalls married Ella M. Cuzzins, 
daughter of Earl and Martha M. (Rhodes) Cuzzins. Their children 
were as follows: Eva May, born October 7, 1872; Earl C, born 
December 7, 1877; Clara Elizabeth, born August 17, 1879; John Har- 
vey, deceased, born August 13, 1881; Thomas William, born July 27, 
1885; George Harris, born October 29, 1892. 

Mrs. Ingall's father. Earl Cuzzins, was born September 5, 1808, and 
her mother, Martha M. Rhodes, was born March 26, 1822. Mrs. 
Cuzzins was born April 15, 1854. 

Mr. Ingalls takes an active part in local politics, and is a member 
of the Republican party. 



Samuel K. Griswold. — Mr. Griswold is accorded special mention 
in the history of Washington County, not only because he is one of 
the most prominent men in the village of Whitehall, and a vital fac- 
tor in its commercial life, but also his father before him was closely 
identified with the best interests of the community, and his more 
remote ancestors have been identified with the history and growth of 
this great country for many generations. 

Samuel K. Griswold was born at Whitehall, Washington County, N. 
Y., January 28, 1844, and was educated in the public schools of his 
native town and at the Claverack School, in Claverack, N. Y. His first 
business experience was in the capacity of a clerk in his father's store, 
where he was employed until 1866. In that year he succeeded his 
father in business, which he has since conducted with such success 
that today his establishment is one of the largest and best known in 
northern New York. Besides his general merchandise business, Mr. 
Griswold has other large interests in and about Whitehall, including a 
great deal of real estate. 

Although in politics Mr. Griswold is on the weaker side in Wash- 
ington County, being an independent Democrat, he is, nevertheless, 
highly popular with all classes, and holds the confidence and respect 
of representative men all over this part of the state. He takes a keen 
interest in the welfare of Whitehall, and was one of the trustees of 
the village when the present system of waterworks was constructed. 
He has not, however, sought or cared for public office, his mind being 
distinctly of a business cast, and his large interests require a great 
deal of his personal attention. 



88 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

When the analytical historian sets himself the task of tracing civil- 
ization to its logical causes, it will become a principle in political 
ethics that the business man is a much more important factor in the 
growth and development of a country than is the politician. Judged 
by this standard there is no man of his day in Whitehall who has done 
more for the community than Mr. Griswold. He is a man of ideas 
and actions, and all his energies have ever been directed towards 
progress and advancement, not only in his business, but in public 
affairs. 

He is a member and Trustee of the Whitehall Presbyterian Church 
and takes a great interest in the success of this society, which he sup- 
ports in a tangible and liberal manner. 

On June 19, 1867, Mr. Griswold married Martha, daughter of W. S. 
Eddy, of Whitehall. They have one son, Morgan Billings Griswold, 
who is a graduate of Cornell University, class of 1895. 

Mr. Griswold's parents were Isaac C. and Eliza G. (Keteltas) Gris- 
wold. His father, Isaac C. Griswold, was a native of Benson, Vt., 
but came to Whitehall in 1827, beginning life there as a clerk in a 
store, and subsequently became a prominent merchant and vice-presi- 
dent of the First National Bank. He was a man of prominence and 
much influence, and a consistent member of the First Presbyterian 
Church. 

In politics he was a Whig, but when that party went to pieces, on 
the formation of the Republican party iu 1855, Mr. Griswold became 
a Democrat. He was largely interested in real estate in Whitehall, 
held several village offices, and did a great deal to substantiate the 
commercial supremacy of the place. He died in 1879, aged sixty- 
nine; his wife died in 1892, and was seventy-five years of age at the 
time of her death. 



Charles C. DeGolyer was born in the village of Sandy Hill, July 
10, 1845, and received his education in the schools of Fort Ann, his 
parents moving to that place when he was quite young. He has 
always followed farming, and with the exception of such business 
trips as he has had to make at different times, has always lived in 
Fort Ann, where he has held several important offices, notable among 
them being that of Notary Public and Justice of the Peace, both of 
which offices he now holds. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 89 

In 1873 he was married to Miss Hannah Robinson of Pottsville, 
Pa. They have two children, Morris and Henry. Mr. DeGolyer's 
parents, Sidney and Hannah DeGolyer, were born near the town of 
Fort Ann, Washington County. 



Henry Gray, M. D., was born at Cambridge, Washington County, 
N. Y., September 6, 1842, and was educated at the Cambridge High 
School, Medical Department of Harvard, and the College of Physi- 
cians and Surgeons, New York City, graduating from the latter insti- 
tution in 1867. 

Previous, however, to taking his medical course of studies, he served 
three years in the War of the Rebellion. In 1862 he organized Com- 
pany G, 123d New York Volunteers, at Cambridge. N. Y. , and went 
out as their Captain, and during his three years of service rose to the 
rank of Major. 

In 1867 Dr. Gray settled in Greenwich, where he has since remained. 
He is a member of the Washington County Medical Society, and also 
of the New York State Medical Society; President of the Board of 
Education at Greenwich; President of the Water Works Company; 
President of the Greenwich & Johnsonville Railroad Company, and 
Director in the Mohegan Pulp Company. 

On May 7, 1867, Dr. Gray married Anna Buell. They have one 
son, Harry C. Gray. 

Dr. Gray's parents were Henry C. and Janet (Bullions) Gray. His 
mother was a daughter of Alexander Bullions, a Scotcli Presbyterian 
minister, who was pastor of the church in Coila, N. Y., for over fifty 
years. 



Frank A. Hill is the son of Fred E. Hill, Ex-Sheriff of Washing- 
ton County, and Sarah A. (Rundell) Hill. He was born in the town 
of Easton, Washington County, N. Y., in 1875, but received his early 
education in the public schools of Salem, to which town his parents 
moved during his childhood. After completing the course of Wash- 
ington Academy, he continued his studies at the Albany Business Col- 
lege, and was graduated from that institution in 1894. His first work 

[1] 



90 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

as a stenographer was with the Adirondack League Club, but this 
position he was obliged to resign very soon on account of the death of 
his father. After about two years spent in mercantile pursuits he 
received, in December, 1895, the appointment of stenographer to 
the Grand Jury of Washington County, and has continued to hold that 
position to the present time. 

Being active and popular in Republican politics, Mr. Hill, in April, 
1896, was appointed Clerk of the village of Salem, and held that office 
until July i, 1897, when he resigned. In May, 1898, he was reap- 
pointed and now continues in the office. In 1898 Mr. Hill was 
appointed Police Justice to fill out a short unexpired term, and in 
the following year was elected for a full term. He was elected to the 
office of Justice of the Peace for the town of Salem in 1897. In Janu- 
ary, 1900, he was appointed Official Stenographer of the Washington 
County Court, which position he now holds. In 1898 he established 
a general insurance and real estate business in the village of Salem. 

Mr. Hill is a member of Salem Lodge No. 391, F. & A. M., Federal 
Chapter No. 10, R. A. M., of the Salem Lodge No. 45, I. O. O. F., 
and of the Salem Fire Department. 

On Jime 21, 1898, he was joined in marriage to Miss Ivaora, daugh- 
ter of Andrew J. and Kizia (Clapp) Haggart, of Salem. 



Edward Delwin Hendrick was born in Whitehall, Washington 
County, N. Y., December 20, 1864. He graduated from the White- 
hall High School in 1882, and then entered the store of J. H. Sullivan 
as clerk, where he remained five years. In 1889 he engaged in busi- 
ness on his own account in partnership with O. W. Blodgett, under 
the firm name of Blodgett & Hendrick, which firm carried on the 
business until 189G, when Mr. Hendrick succeeded to the entire busi- 
ness and conducted it alone until 1898, when he closed the business 
out. In August, 1899, he became manager of R. M. Witherbee's 
cash branch store, where he has since been engaged. 

Mr. Hendrick married Mabel, daughter of Johnson and Minerva 
(Starch) Osgood, in June, 1890, and they have one son, Harold, born 
in May, 1891. 

Mr. Hendrick is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., 
Whitehall Encampment No. 69, I. O. O. F., and also of the Canton, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 91 

Whitehall. His parents were Morgan and Charlotte (Smith) Hen- 
drick. Mr. Hendrick is an active and thorough business man of 
agreeable manners and has many friends in Whitehall and vicinity. 



Silas S. Hurbell, one of the representative men of the town of 
Fort Edward, and a veteran of the Civil War, was born in Vermont 
July 14, 1837, but has lived in Fort Edward since three years of age. 
He received his education in the public schools and was trained up in 
the livery business and also had extensive experience in lumbering. 
He worked in the woods as a measurer and marker, and was a clerk in 
the office of the collector for canals when the war broke out. He 
enlisted October 19, 1861, in Company F, 93d Regiment, New York 
State Volunteers, and was mustered into service November 14th of 
that year. He served three years and was with the Army of the 
Potomac. He participated in all the operations of his regiment and 
was engaged in as many battles as probably any living veteran of that 
war, as will be seen by perusal of the following list of engagements: 
Lee's Mill, April, 1862; Williamsburg, May 5, 1862; The Wilderness, 
May 5, 6, 7, 1864; Todd's Tavern, May 8, 1864; Po River, May 10 and 
II, 1864; Spottsylvania, May 12, 1864. New York River. May 18, 1864 
Anderson's Farm, May 19, 1864; North Anne River, May 23 and 24 
1864; Tolopotamy Creek, May 31, 1864; Cold Harbor. June 3, 1864 
Petersburg, June 16, 18 and 22, 1864; Deep Bottom, July 28, 1864 
Petersburg, July 31, 1864; Deep Bottom, August 15 and 16, 1864 
Poplar Grove Church, October 2, 1864; Boydton Plank Road, October 
27, 1864. 

Mr. Hubbell received his honorable discharge November 14, 1864, 
and returning home to Fort Edward opened up a market which he 
conducted for ten years, when he embarked in the livery business, 
which he has since conducted. 

Mr. Hubbell married Mary F. Finn, who died leaving two children, 
Laura S. and Mary C. For his second wife he married Anna S. 
Brown of Chicago. 

Mr Hubbell's parents were J. S. Hubbell and Eliza (Butler) Hub- 
bell. The family is an old American one and came to Vermont from 
Berkshire, Massachusetts. The original Hubbell family in America 
was in Connecticut. 



92 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Lansing M. Howland. — The subject of this sketch was one of the 
most prominent and successful business men and manufacturers of 
Washington County; was born in the village of Sandy Hill August 19, 
1850. 

He was educated in the public schools of his native town and the 
Fort Edward Collegiate Institute. 

He was principally reared in Fort Edward, and since 1867 he has 
resided on upper Broadway, where he has erected a fine residence on 
the site formerly owned and occupied by his father. He is the eldest 
son of Enos and Susan (Murphy) Howland. His father was a brother 
of Ainasa Howland, and both were natives of the town of Galway, 
Saratoga County. 

In December, 187 1, Lansing M. Howland married Harriet C, a 
daughter of David M. and Cornelia (Bristol) Odell, of Fort Edward. 
One daughter was born unto them, Cornelia, who died August 22, 
1873, aged 10 months. 

Lansing M. Howland is a lineal descendent of Henry Howland, 
who, with his brothers, Arthur and John, were Quaker immigrants, 
who became the progenitors and founders, of the Howland family in 
America. They arrived from England in 1625 and joined the Ply- 
mouth Colony in Massachusetts. These brothers, Henry, Arthur and 
John, were of that immortal band of pilgrims who left their native 
land on account of religious and political intolerance. Stephen How- 
land, the grandfather of Lansing M. Howland, who was a native of 
Dutchess County, N. Y., removed to Saratoga County and became 
one of the first settlers in the town of Galway, a farmer until the year 
1844, when he left Galway with his family and settled in Sandy Hill. 
Here he carried on the book-binding business for a few years. 

About the year 1846 Stephen Howland, with his sons, Enos and 
Amasa, purchased a site and built the first paper mill at Baker's Falls, 
the first of the kind in the State, thus becoming the pioneers in the 
paper business at Sandy Hill. 

In 1852 Stephen Howland, father of Enos and Amasa, retired from 
business, dying in 1862, at the residence of his son, Gardner, in the 
town of Moreau, Saratoga County. His sons, Enos and Amasa, have 
since conducted the paper mill business on Baker's Falls with the ex- 
ception often years at Fort Ann, where, in 1855, they built a paper 
mill, which they successfully operated until 1865, when they sold their 
Fort Ann mill and returned to Sandy Hill. 




-^t 

^ « 




(7\^ ^-(^ ^"'ca.^-tf^<A-^^2>«-.ti--Vt — 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 93 

Enos Howland, the father of Lansing M. Howland, retired from 
active business in 1872, dying at his home on upper Broadway, Fort 
Edward, in 1877, aged fifty-seven years. 

In the year 1873 Lansing M. Howland became a partner with his 
uncle, Amasa, in the old Howland paper mill at Baker's Falls, the 
Miller & Howland Mill, and another mill piirchased from N. W. Wait 
& Son. The firm name was Howland & Company, John H. Derby 
being added to the firm. 

On December i, 1893, this company was succeeded by the Howland 
Paper Company: Amasa Howland, President; J. E. Howland, Vice- 
President; John H. Derby, Secretary, and Lansing M. Howland, 
Treasurer. The stock of the company capitalized at a million dollars. 
These mills, including the bag factory, furnished employment for 
about three hundred operatives. 

About the year 1897, the senior partner retiring from active busi- 
ness with the Howland Paper Company, Lansing M. Howland was 
chosen president of the firm tintil it sold out to the Union Bag and 
Paper Company, March i, 1899. 

Mr. Howland had not confined his attention entirely to manufactur- 
ing and financial affairs. All public improvements and the welfare of 
his locality have always had his prompt and hearty support, and he 
has found time to devote some of his energies to public affairs, his 
connection with which has always been characterized by honorable 
and unselfish motives, as well as marked ability. For the past twenty- 
five years he has been prominently identified with the business life of 
Fort Edward and vSandy Hill, and has alwaj^s been identified with the 
great paper manufacturing interests, which are the most important 
enterprises of this part of the State. 

Mr. Howland has served as a Republican county committeeman, a 
delegate to Republican County and State Conventions, was a delegate 
and elector for his Congressional District in 1896, when President 
McKinley was elected. 

He served the town of Fort Edward as its Supervisor for five 
terms, namely, in the years 1885, 1886 and 1887, and again for two 
years in 1896-7 and in 1898, and Chairman two terms. He was a 
member of Fort Edward Council, Royal Arcanum; micmber of the 
Business Men's Club of Fort Edward, was vice-president of the Glens 
Falls Trust Company, had been a director in the First National Bank 
of Fort Edward, and president of the Fort Edward Electric Light 



94 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Company. Mr. Howland was a member of the Fort Edward Village 
Baptist Church, also a deacon and one of its trustees. 

Mr. Howland was a man of high and noble purposes and of an ex- 
alted personal character. His private life was pure and distinguished 
by acts of kindness and generosity. 

His closest friends never knew the extent of his benevolence, and 
oftentimes the recipients of his bounty knew not the source from 
whence it came. 

He was loyal and faithful to his friends, and for a friend's sake 
would endure sharp provocation. He loved all that was good and 
noble in life. 

The world was better for his presence, and it will be the poorer for 
his absence. 

Every movement for the public good found in him a ready friend 
and active helper. The high and low, the sick and poor, the old and 
young, all alike were counted in the circle of his friends. 

The death of Lansing M. Howland occurred at his residence on up- 
per Broadway, Fort Edward, Tuesday afternoon, June ii, 1901, after 
more than a year of failing health. On Tuesday, June 4, he was un- 
able to leave his bed, and declined rapidly, dying a week later. 

Lansing M. Howland was laid at rest on Friday afternoon, June 14, 
in the receiving vault of the Union Cemetery, between Fort Edward 
and Sandy Hill, with tributes of profound respect from his fellow 
citizens of Fort Edward, Sandy Hill, Glens Falls, and of the county. 

The following organizations were represented at the funeral, which 
was attended from his late residence : Washington Council, Royal 
Arcanum, the Fort Edward Club, directors of the First National 
Bank of Fort Edward, directors of the Glens Falls Trust Company, 
and employees of the Union Bag and Paper Company, Baker's Falls, 
and by business men and citizens in large numbers. Business places 
were closed during the afternoon. 

Rev. E. R. Sawyer, D. D., of Sandy Hill Baptist Church read ap- 
propriate Scripture selections, and spoke briefly in fitting eulogy of 
the deceased, whom he had known intimately, following his address 
with a prayer. 

Rev. Irving C. Foote, Mr. Howland's pastor, paid a feeling tribute 
to the exalted character of one with whom he had been brought in 
close contact in both church and social relations. Mrs. A. P. Hill 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 95 

sang tenderly, "There's a Beautiful Land on High," and, with Miss 
Breese, rendered with thrilling pathos " Through the Gates of Gold." 

The floral offerings wers too numerous to mention in detail, and 
were exceedingly chaste and beautiful. A touching memento was 
that laid by Mrs. Howland upon the cofHn, made up of fifty white 
roses — one for each j'^ear of the life closed upon earth in its full prime 
and in the meridian of its usefulness. 

The bearers were Hon. Addison B. Colvin and Daniel P. Belong of 
Glens Falls, Loren Allen and Charles T. Beach of Sandy Hill, Levi 
H. Wing and Robert O. Bascom of Fort Edward, Hon. William R. 
Hobbie of Greenwich, and Rev. John G. Smart of Cambridge. 

Besides his wife, Mr. Howland is survived by his mother, two 
brothers, Clarence and ('harles, and two sisters. Misses Anna and 
Mary, all of Akron, Ohio. 

On Friday afternoon, July 26, the form of the late Lansing M. 
Howland was taken from the receiving vault and was placed in its last 
resting place in the Union Cemetery. In a beautiful plot near the 
soldier's monument he lies, with his infant daughter, in the security 
of a stone sepulchre. The burial service was pronounced by his pas- 
tor, Rev. Irving C. Foote. 



WiNFiELD A. HuppucH was born in the city of Buffalo, N. Y., Jan- 
uary 28, i860, and was the son of John and Augusta Huppuch. He 
was educated in the public schools of Buffalo and Bryant & Stratton's 
Business College, and after leaving this institution was employed in 
the office of his father, who carried on a painting business. At the 
age of fifteen years Winfield A. Huppuch went to New York City and 
took a position with Joseph Hill, who was engaged in the wall paper 
business, and reinained with him from 1876 until 1889, thus early in 
life becoming associated with the industry in which he is today one of 
the leaders in the country. In 1889 he accepted a position with Wil- 
liam Campbell & Company, and after two years' service was taken 
into the firm as a partner. In October, 1893, their factory was 
destroyed by fire, and in 1894 the firm dissolved. In the fall of the 
latter year Winfield A. Huppuch and Julius Jackson came to Sandy 
Hill and, associating other capitalists with them, formed the company 



96 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

known as the Standard Wall Paper Company, of which Mr. Huppuch 
is one of the general managers and vice-president. 

During his residence in Sandy Hill Mr. Huppuch has not only shown 
himself to be a man of superior business ability, through his able man- 
agement of the large interests in his hands, but has also taken great 
interest in the welfare and advancement of the village at large, serv- 
ing as President of the Village for one term. He is vice-president of 
the Peoples National Bank, vice-president of the Spring Brook Water 
Company, first vice-president of the Empire Real Estate & Theatre 
Company, of Glens Falls, president of the Sandy Hill Bowling 
Company, and vice-president of the Masonic Temple Association at 
Sandy Hill. He is a member of Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. 
M., Sandy Hill Chapter No. 189, R. A. M., and Washington Com- 
mandery No. ^3- K^- T., Saratoga Springs. 

In July, 1884, Mr. Huppuch married Miss Ella May Wannamaker, 
of New York, and they have two sons, namely: Milton Kipp and 
Frank Winfield. 

The Standard Wall Paper Company has been of incalculable benefit 
to the village of Sandy Hill. This establishment employs an average 
of 260 people. Their weekly pay roll amounts to $2,400, and their 
output amounts to 14,000,000 rolls of wall paper yearly. 



George L. Hatch was born in South Hartford, Washington 
County, N. Y., November 15, 1844, and was educated in the district 
school and South Hartford Academy. At the age of twent}^-one he 
began the active business of life, farming for B. G. Sweet, with whom 
he worked until 1865, and in 1867 started in the tannery business for 
himself. This business he continued for ten years, or until 1877. 
He then engaged in farming until 1879, then bought the farm where 
he now lives. 

On January 9, 1879, Mr. Hatch married Charlotte A. Norton of the 
town of Hartford. Mr. Hatch's parents were Levi and Olive (Town- 
send) Hatch. Levi Hatch was born in the town of Granville, Wash- 
ington County, in February, 1809, and his wife, Olive, was born at 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 97 

South Hartford in the year 1815. They had a family of nine child- 
ren. Mrs. Hatch's parents were John B. and Lola (Stearns) Norton, 
who had a family of ten children. 



HiLFiNGER Brothers. — The firm of Hilfinger Brothers consists of 
A. Hilfinger, Alexander Hilfinger, Rupert Hilfinger and Fred Hil- 
finger. They established themselves in their present factory in 
October, 1892, where they carry on a large manufacturing trade 
and ship their goods all over the United States. In the summer of 
1899 they made a large shipment to the Bermuda Islands. 

All of the brothers are salesmen as well as manufacturerg and thor- 
ough business men, and they go on the road themselves to dispose of 
their wares. They manufacture stoneware and earthen ware of almost 
all kinds and patterns, as well as drain, tile and sewer pipe. 



DuANE L. Hall was born at Fort Miller, Washington County, N. 
Y., September 27, 1863, and was educated at the Hartford High 
School. He was engaged in farming from 188 1 to 1883, and in the 
mercantile business from 1885 to 1890, when he embarked in the hotel 
business, in which he built "The Oaks," at Lake Cossayuna, in the 
town of Argyle. Mr. Hall is an affable and genial gentleman, and his 
hotel is a favorite resort, not only on this account, but also because of 
its beautiful surroundings on this picturesque lake. 

The hotel, and the cottages in connection with it, will accommodate 
fifty guests. The dining room is large and pleasant, and, like every 
room in the house, overlooks the lake. Wide, double balconies extend 
around two sides of the house, affording a most comfortable and 
charming place from which to view the rippling lake, in the hot, 
drowsy, summer days. 

The lake abounds with fish and the woods with game. Fish are 
served fresh from the lake, and consist of bass, bull-heads and perch. 

The stocking of Lake Cossayuna with bass from the State Hatchery 
and from Ohio has kept up the supply, so it is said by sportsmen that 
this lake offers the best bass fishing in the state. Those who are fond 



98 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of brook trout fishing will be furnished with a guide to White Creek, 
Black Creek, Beaver Brook or Coy Brook, in each of which there is 
good angling. 

The hunting season for woodcock and partridge opens August 15th, 
after which sportsmen will find first-class shooting in the vicinity of 
the lake. In the mountains on either side will be found grey squirrels 
in large numbers, while in the fall, after September 15th, wild duck 
shooting is excellent. Bait, fishing tackle, guns and ammunition can 
be obtained at the hotel. 

There are many fine drives around Cossayuna Lake, and within a 
few miles of " The Oaks" are Barkleys, Carters, McDougalls and Sum- 
mit Lakes, each of which is well worth visiting. 

Cossayuna Lake is fed by springs from the hillsides, which insures 
pure water; the air is clear and pure, there is absolutely no malaria 
in the climate, and these, with the elevation, make "The Oaks" an 
ideal health resort. 

Families bringing their own horses and carriages will find good 
accommodations for them at the stables of " The Oaks," where a good 
livery is also kept as well as one of the best boat liveries in northern 
New York. Boatmen and guides are furnished at reasonable rates. 

Families can be furnished with cottages, taking their meals at the 
hotel. 

Parties are met at Fort Edward, Salem or Greenwich with convey- 
ances from " The Oaks," at reasonable rates, and requests for such can 
be sent by letter, telephone or telegraph. The hotel has a long dis- 
tance telephone. 

Mr. Hall is a prominent member of both the Masonic order and the 
Odd Fellows, and in politics is a strong Republican. 

On July 21, 1886, he married Jennie M. Sill of South Hartford and 
they have three children, namely : Harold D., Edward S. and Duane 
L., Jr. Mr. Hall's parents were Solomon B., and Mary M. (Harden) 
Hall. Solomon Hall was born in the town of Hartford in 1835. Mrs. 
Hall's parents were Dr. Joseph Sill and Laura A. (Brown) Sill. Mr. 
Hall's grandfather, Jonathan Hall, was born in 1802 and died in 1875. 

Mr. Hall is a great lover of horses and always has from six to ten fine 
animals in his barn. His hotel, " The Oaks," is universally admitted 
to be the finest resort in Washington County, not only on account of 
its lake and mountain scenery, but also because of the splendid enter- 
tainment which Mr. Hall furnishes to his ofuests. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 99 

Daniel P. Hurd was born at Belcher, in the town of Hebron, 
Washington County, N. Y., October 28, 1869. He was educated in 
the common schools of Belcher and West Hebron, and has followed 
the occupation of farmer all his life. 

In politics Mr. Hurd is a Democrat, and has been nominated on 
that ticket several times, but, as is well known, the overwhelming- 
majority of the Republican party in this town, and indeed all over 
Washington County, prevents the election of the best Democrat. 

Daniel P. Hurd's parents were John P. and Nancy M. (Taylor) 
Hurd. His mother's two great uncles were soldiers in the Revolu- 
tionary War, and her grandfather, Major Taylor, was a Major in the 
War of 1 81 2. 



Louis Hyatt was born in the Province of Quebec, Dominion of 
Canada, ]\Iarch 16, 1835, but his parents removed to Champlain, N. 
Y., when he was a child, and there he received his education in the 
public schools. In 1852 he came to Whitehall and went to work on 
the canal and continued in this business until 1888. During most of 
this time he was in the boat bvisiness on his own account, and was an 
expert in every way in the business with which he had been asso- 
ciated from 1848. 

In 1888 Mr. Hyatt opened a grocery business in Whitehall in which 
he has since been successfully engaged. He is a thorough business 
man, whose honesty and enterprise have made him uniformly suc- 
cessful and highl}^ popular. 

In politics Mr. Hyatt is a Republican, and has held various town 
offices, among them that of Town Collector. He is also a prominent 
social organization man, high up both in the Odd Fellows and Masonic 
Fraternity. He is a member of Ph(enix Lodge, No. 96, F. & A. M., 
Champlain Chapter No. 25, Washington Commandery No. ^3, K. T., 
Saratoga Springs, and of the Mystic Shrine at Troy. In the Odd 
Fellows he is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 69, I. O. O. F., and 
Encampment No. 5, I. O. O. F. 

On January 10, 1857, Mr. Hyatt married Mary J., daughter of 
Gabriel Blanchard, and they have four children, namely: John L., 



100 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

who is a member of the New York City police force; George H., a 
partner in the firm of B. Havens & Co., lumber merchants. He was 
with the Chicago Lumber Company for a time and also with the Mis- 
souri Mining Company; William D., who is associated with his father 
and Julia F., who is the wife of J. H. Burdett. 



Clifton L. Infield, M. D., is a native and life-long resident of 
Washington Coimty, and occupies the position of one of the leading 
members of the medical profession in the county. He was born at 
Fort Edward, N. Y., September 28, 1859, and received his literary 
education in the schools of his native place and the high school at 
Sandy Hill. He then entered the New York Homoeopathic Medical 
College, from which, after a highly creditable course, he was graduated 
in the class of 1883. After graduating he practiced for six months at 
Fort Miller, Washington County, N. Y., finally establishing himself 
in Sandy Hill in 1884. 

Dr. Infield is prominent not only in his profession, but also in 
social and political circles. He is a member of the Washington 
County Medical Society and of the Masonic Fraternity, in which he 
has attained a very high standing. He is a member of the Blue Lodge 
and Chapter at Sandy Hill, of Washington Commandery No. ^3, 
K. T., Saratoga Springs, and of the Shrine and Oriental Temple at 
Troy, N. Y. He has held various positions in the order, including 
Master of the Blue Lodge and High Priest of the Chapter. 

In politics Dr. Infield stands high in the councils of his party and 
held the office of Coroner for three years, viz. : 1889, 1890 and 1891. 
He has also been Health Officer and Village Treasurer. 

In 1890 Dr. Infield married Carrie L. Heggeman. They have four 
children, viz: Clifton, Edward, Marion and Catherine. 

Dr. Infield's parents were Edmund and Anna (Sweet) Infield. The 
Infield family is not only one of the oldest and most honorable in 
America, but has been identified with the history of Washington 
County for several generations. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 101 

M. D. Ingalsbe was born in the town of Hartford, Washington 
County, in the year 1848, and was educated in his native town and in 
Granville. He came to Fort Ann in 187 1, where he clerked in a store 
for four years, and in 1875 embarked in business for himself, opening 
a general store, which he conducted until 1879, when he sold out and 
established a grocery business, which he conducted until 1888, when 
his place of business was destroyed by fire. In 1898 Mr. Ingalsbe 
opened a meat market, which he conducts at the present time. 

In 187 1 M. D. Ingalsbe married Mary S. Oakman. They have a 
family of four children, namely: Harvey D., Emily E., Julia E. and 
Densy A. 



George P. Johnson, only son of Joseph B. and Eleanor (Parmer) 
Johnson, was born in Whitehall, Washington County, N. Y., April 6, 
1856. He was educated in the district schools and in the Whitehall 
High School, and after leaving the latter institution took up the pro- 
fession of teaching, which he followed for a number of terms, being 
thus employed from 1875 to 1S82. In the latter year he went to Com- 
stocks and took charge of Baker's store, remaining three years. He 
then went into farming, which occupation he has since pursued. On 
January 17, 1895, Mr. Johnson married Emily E., daughter of Samuel 
G. and Hannah (Belden) Skeels of Dresden. They have one child, 
Eleanor, born April 19, 1899. 

Mr. Johnson is a member of the Baptist Church, is a broad-minded 
and intelligent gentleman, who takes an intelligent interest in all 
public affairs, but has held no public office and does not foster any 
ambition in that direction. 



Hon. Pelatiah Jakway, the subject of this sketch, is one of the 
oldest citizens of Washington County, and is the oldest living lawyer 
in the county. He was born in the town of Fort Ann, June 2, 1819, 
and was educated in the Granville Seminary and Union College, grad- 
uating from the latter institution in the class of 1842. He then studied 
law with Erastus Culver at Greenwich, and also with Peckham & Colt, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1845, at Utica, N. Y. In 1846 he began 
the practice of his profession at Fort Ann, where he has lived ever 



102 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

since, constantly engaged in the duties of his profession, or of public 
life. He was Town Clerk of the town of Fort Ann for several years; 
he was elected Superintendent of Schools, and held that position unin- 
terruptedly as long as the office existed. He was elected to the State 
Legislature in the fall of 1859, and sat in the House during the year 
i860. He was Justice of the Peace in Fort Ann for the remarkably 
long tenure of forty years, and he also acted as clerk of the Board of 
Supervisors of Washington County for a year. 

On September 12, 1867, Mr. J ak way married Edith Waldo, daughter 
of John and Clara (Collins) Waldo, then of Fort Ann, but formerly of 
Rutland, Vt., where Mrs. Jakway was born. The Waldos were an 
old American family, and counted among them the celebrated Daniel 
Waldo. 

Mr. Jakway's parents were Thomas and Mary (Raisy) Jakway. His 
grandfather, Jonathan Jakway, was the pioneer of the family in Wash- 
ington County, and owned a large tract of land in West Hartford, 
where he erected a homestead. The house was destroyed by fire, but 
subsequently rebuilt, and his sons, George and Thomas, lived there 
after his death. A descendant, Thomas Jakway, lives on the site of 
the old house today. 

Mr. P. Jakway is the last survivor of a family of eight children, four 
sons and four daughters, and he was also the youngest of the family. 
His career as a lawyer, as a public man and as a magistrate, has been 
marked throughout by a high sense of justice and of right between 
man and man, and has been a grand exemplification of the golden 
rule. During his magistracy of over forty years and his career at the 
bar, extending over half a century, he commanded the highest respect 
and esteem of his fellow men, whether he argued for or against them 
at the bar, or dispensed even-handed justice to them in his own court. 

Because of his sterling character and blameless life he always had 
hosts of friends, and because of his long, useful, and honorable career 
as a lawyer, his name shall ever retain an honored place in the annals 
of the bench and bar of Washington County. 

[Mr. Jakway died since the above was written. ] 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 103 

M. F. Jov was bom in Wa: ' ' : 7. Ir.'^r. ^ in 1*53. and fva.5 

educated in the schools of : H^r .-iiir : :• this country in 

1 8S6, and proceeded at once to the village of Fort Ann, where he was 
employed by the Delaware & Hudson Railroad Company : ' ' : 
Champlain Transportation Company, uniil some years ago. 
opened the Dewey Hotel in the village of Fcr: An-, which tcuse he 
is still successfully conducting. 

Mr. Joy is a popular and well l^novrn ': r ; .r. and is 2 successful 
business man. 

Mr. Joy's parents. James and Mary Joy, were b;ih the 

countv of Waterf ord. Ireland, where thev have alwavs re r 



James P. Kjxg was bom at Port Henry, N. Y., April 30. 186S, and 
is a son of John and Katharine (Smith) King. He was educated in 
his native town, and was variously employed xmtil April 27. 1S92, 
vhen he entered the employ of Manville & Skeels as a clerk, where he 
remained for three years, when he formed a copartnership with his 
employer, under the firm name of James M. Skeels & Company This 
firm continued business until August 15, 1S9S, when it was sv 
by the present firm of King & Warner. They do a large an_ ^ -- 
perous business in clothing, boots and shoes, gent's furnishing, etc 

On October 6, 1S97. Mr. King married Xellie A., daughter of 
Patrick H. and Delia (Murphy) Green. They have one child, namely: 
Mary Lorrine, bom July 7. 1898. He is a member of the K. O.T. M., 
:'ne C. M. B. A., and the Catholic Church. 



E. C. KixxEY was bom in the town c ' rd, \Va- 

County. X. Y., December i, 1S60, and was e in the -. 

Academy, from which he graduated in 1S81. Immediately after leav- 
ing school he began the active business of lite as a clerk, in which 
capacity he continued until 1884, with J. J. Reynold, of Hartford. 

Mr. Kinney engaged in farming, in the year 1SS5. and has since 
remained in that business. 

On November 23. 18S3, Mr. Kinney married Lucy Dean, of Hart- 
ford, and thev have a familv of two children, namelv: Mary and 



104 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Minnie. Mr. Kinney's parents were Milton and Mary (Maynard) 
Kinney. Milton Kinney was born in Clinton County, N. Y., in the 
year 1837. E. C. Kinney is one of a family of five children, the 
others being- George, Edgar, Cornelia and Mary. 

Mrs. Kinney is also one of a family of five children, her brothers 
and sisters being William, Horace, Minnie and Laura. Mrs. Kinney's 
parents were Willard and Mary (Hathaway) Dean. 



Rev. Charles D. Kellogg, D. D. — This eloquent and scholarly 
divine was born at Ann Arbor, Michigan, July 3, 1842, and was edu- 
cated in the Peekskill Academy, the Polytechnic Institute, Brooklyn, 
and Princeton College, graduating from the latter institution in the 
class of 1 86 1, at the unusually early age of nineteen. He at once 
entered the Brooklyn Theological Seminary and began preparing 
himself for the ministry of the Presbyterian Church. During his 
theological course he connected himself with the Presbytery at the 
Scotch Presbyterian Church on Fourteenth Street near Sixth Avenue, 
New York City, and in April, 1863, he was licensed to preach by the 
Second New York Presbytery, which is known as the old school. Dr. 
Kellogg's first church was at Wilmington, Delaware, where he 
remained from June, 1863, until April, 1867, when he assumed the 
pastorate of two churches, one at Bacon Hill and the other at Fort 
Miller in this state. He officiated in these chi;rches until September, 
1872, when he took charge of the North Reformed Church at Passaic, 
N. J., and remained there until October, 1879, when he was called to 
Sandy Hill to take charge of the Presbyterian Church at that place 
and at Fort Edward. During the year 1880 he was regularly installed 
as pastor, and has since ministered unto these two churches with 
great acceptability and marked success. During his prosperous 
regime the old church in Sandy Hill, which was built in 1826, was 
torn down and a handsome stone edifice erected, which was completed 
and dedicated in 1895. 

Dr. Kellogg's pastorate in Sandy Hill has been a labor of love, not 
to be separated from which, he has declined calls to take charge of 
churches in Boston, Wilmington and Philadelphia. 

On October 28, 1863, Dr. Kellogg married Mary J. Baucus, daugh- 
ter of Hon. Joseph Baucus, ex-sheriff and ex-assemblyman of Sara- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 105 

toga County, and a sister of Hon. A. B. Baucus, ex-sheriff and ex- 
senator of the same county. The children of Rev. Dr. and Mrs. 
Kellogg are Joseph Augiistus, Florence Grace, Charles W. , and Kate. 

Joseph A. Kellogg is a prominent lawyer of Glens Falls, who has 
served a term as Third Assistant Attorney General of New York 
State, and is a prominent Democrat. Florence Grace is the wife of 
Preston Paris of the Union Bag & Paper Company at Sandy Hill. 
Charles W. Kellogg is a well known banker at Cawker City, Kansas. 

Dr. Kellogg's parents w^ere Daniel W. and Esther A. (Bull) 
Kellogg. . 

Dr. Kellogg is noted, not only for his scholarly attainments, bnt for 
his lofty character and charity for his fellow men. He is a descen- 
dant from Covenanter stock who held their religion dearer than 
aught else, in the old land of the heather. 

The progenitors of this family came to America early in the seven- 
teenth century soon after the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth 
Rock. The name was then Kolloch, which has become Americanized 
into the present spelling. Hon. Charles A. Kellogg, paternal grand- 
father of Dr. Kellogg, was a native of Connecticut, but settled in 
Cayuga County, N. Y., in the last century. He was a strong sup- 
porter of Henry Clay and served one term in Congress from the 
Cayuga district. He died at Ann Arbor, Michigan, at the age of 
seventy-five years. He had several sons, one of whom was Daniel 
W. Kellogg, father of Dr. Kellogg. Daniel W. Kellogg was born and 
reared in Galway, Saratoga County, N. Y. He carried on a whole- 
sale hardware business in Troy, N. Y., for some years under the firm 
name of Kellogg & Company, but in 1852 removed to New York City 
where he continued the same business until 1870, when Mr. Kellogg 
sold out and removed to Ann Arbor, Michigan, the following year. 
He remained in Ann Arbor for twelve years, when he returned to 
New York State and located at Sandy Hill, where he resided until 
his death in 1885, in 'the 73d year of his age. He was a successful 
business man and an ardent Episcopalian and Republican. 

He married Esther A. Bull, daughter of Judge Archibald Bull of 
Troy in 1833. She died in August, 1842, when Dr. Charles D. 
Kellogg, her son, was only five weeks old. Her father, Judge Bull, 
was not only an eminent jurist, but an historian of great note. He 
served three terms as Judge of Rensselaer County and was one of the 

[nj 



106 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

most distinguished Masons of the state of New York. He arose to 
the office of Grand Inspector General of the western hemisphere and 
in that capacity introduced the first organized Free-masonry in the 
Island of Hayti. 

Owing to his mother's death when he was an infant. Dr. Kellogg 
was reared by his father's sister, Mrs. E. S. Abel, of Peekskill on the 
Hudson. 



William H. Keyworth was born in North Argyle, October i8, 
1867, and was educated in the common schools of Fort Ann and 
Argyle. He has followed the occupation of farming, first with his 
father and then with Wellington Durkee, in the years 1886 and 1887, 
and since that date on his own account. Mr. Keyworth takes an 
active interest in public affairs and was Commissioner of Highways for 
the village of Argyle in 1895 and 1896. 

On Februar}' 28, 1880, Mr. Keyworth married Susan Anna, only 
child of Joseph Kee, and they have a family of three children, namely : 
Amy E., Harold W. and Ada May. 

Mr. Keyworth's parents were Joseph D. and Eliza (Evans) Key- 
worth. Joseph Keyworth was a native of England. He was born in 
1838 and came to this country in 1858. His wife, also, was born in 
England in the year 1848. 



Robert A. Lixexdoll, M.D. — The subject of this sketch, who was 
one of the prominent men of Fort Edward, and an ornament to the 
medical profession of Washington County, was born at Fort Edward, 
September 15, 1845. His parents were John and Hannah (Caldwell) 
LinendoU. He received his literary education, in the Fort Edward 
Institute, from which he was graduated in the class of 1864. He then 
took up his medical studies with Dr. George W. Little, and subse- 
quently took two medical courses — one at the Albany Medical College 
and one at Ann Arbor, Michigan — graduating from both colleges, and 
so representing both of the great schools of medicine. Allopathy and 
Homoeopathy. After receiving his degrees he began the active prac- 
tice of his profession in Fort Edward, where his superior skill and 
ability, together with a genial and kindly disposition, soon placed 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 107 

him in possession of a large clientele. His professional success, his 
fine attainments and strong personality, rendered him highly popular 
with all classes of citizens, and although he never sought public office 
(the demands of his large practice drawing heavily upon his time and 
energies) he was persuaded to allow himself to be placed in nomina- 
tion by the 'Democratic party for President of the village, in the spring 
of 1899, and although the village is decidedly Republican, he was 
elected by a large majority, and proved himself an able official up to 
the time of his untimely death, which occurred July 5, 1899. 

Dr. Linendoll was a scholarly and progressive man, and took a 
deep interest in all literary and scientific subjects. He was a promi- 
nent Mason, a member of Fort Edward Lodge, F. & A. M., Fort Ed- 
ward Chapter, R. A. M., Washington Commandery Xo. S3' K. T., 
Saraoga Springs, and of the Oriental Temple, of Troy, N. Y. His 
funeral was conducted under the auspices of Washington Comman- 
derv, the members of which turned out in full force to pay their last 
tribute of respect to him who had stood so high in their Council. 

On July 10, 1884, Dr. Linendoll married Anna L. Nash, daughter 
of Hon. Melvin A. Xash, of Fort Edward, who,v,nth her two daughters, 
Mildred and Edith, survive him. 

Notwithstanding that his time was so largely occupied in the care of 
his many patients, in every one of whom he took a personal interest, 
he was pronouncedly domestic in his tastes and habits. 

At his own fireside, and by the bedside of his patients, the warmth 
of his kind and sympathetic heart was always felt and appreciated. 
In these two spheres, the home and the sick room — and none are more 
important — the influence of his cultured mind and generous heart has 
left its lasting impress ; and to all who knew him he is as Ben Adhem 
of old, whose name is ever remembered and honored, because he loved 
his fellow man. 



WiLLARD Lawtox. — Ex-Supcrvisor WiUard Lawton was born in the 
town of Hoosick, Rensselaer County, X. Y., September 2^, 1842. He 
was among the first to enlist in the Civil War on the Union side, join- 
ing Colonel Walter B. Phelps' 2 2d Regiment, Company D, which 
formed part of the Army of the Potomac. He was appointed Sergeant 
the same year, and fought in the following battles: Falmouth, Va. ; 
Rappahannock River, Va. ; Sulphur Springs, Va. ; Gainesville, Va. ; 



108 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Groveton, Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, 
PoUox Mills Creek and Chancellorsville. He was never wounded, 
although many times men were falling around him with terrible 
rapidity. He received his honorable discharge in June, 1863, and 
returned to Cambridge, where he worked in the milling business 
during the next five years, and since then he has been engaged in 
speculating and farming. 

Mr. Lawton was Supervisor of the town of White Creek two terms, 
and Commissioner of Highways for ten years. He is a member of 
Cambridge Valley Lodge No. 481, F. & A. M., and also is now, and 
has been for nine years. Commander of Post John McKie No. 309, 
G. A. R. He has been a Mason for thirty-five years. 

Mr. Lawton's parents died when he was five years of age, and being 
thus early left without his natural guardians, he has made his own 
way in the world, and is entirely a self-made man. When a boy he 
paid for his living by working before and after school hours and 
during vacations; indeed, he did not attend school after he was ten 
years old, but, being of a studious nature, became a better practical 
scholar than most young men. 

In 1883 Willard Lawton married Elizabeth H. Crosby, of Cam- 
bridge, N. Y., daughter of Samuel W. Crosby, a well known Qounty 
official, who was County Treasurer and Superintendent of the Poor. 
Mrs. Lawton is a member of the Daughters of the Revolution, Cam- 
bridge Chapter, being a descendant of Colonel Samuel Crosby, who 
was a surgeon in Colonel Ward's regiment in the Continental Army. 



Joseph A. Lawton, son of Isaac and Lydia (Crossman) Lawton, 
was born in the City of Troy, N. Y., February 23, 1863. When he was 
nine years of age, his parents came to Washington County, where he 
received his education and where he has since resided. 

On September 14, 1885, Joseph A. Lawton married Nellie C, 
daughter of Peter and Mary (Shea) Shea, and they have one son, 
Joseph, born June 12, 1893. 

Mr. Lawton traces his ancestors back to the landing of the " May- 
flower." His grandfather was Asaph Lawton, and his great grand- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 109 

father was Joseph Lawton, who came from Rhode Island, to which 
state his ancestors had moved from Massachusetts. 

Mr. Lawton is a representative farmer and a highly respected citi- 
zen of the town of Jackson. 



Michael W. Liddle was born in the town of Salem, Washington 
County, N. Y., April 30, 1859, and was educated at the Washington 
Academy. 

Mr. Liddle has followed the occupation of farmer all his life. He 
began in Salem, and in 1896 moved to the town of Jackson and 
branched out into a stock raising business, in which he is very suc- 
cessful, and is building up for himself a high reputation. 

Michael W. Liddle married Edna E. Hughes, born June 4, 1864, 
daughter of Robert and Frances (Dickinson) Hughes, and they have 
a family of three children, namely: Anna M., born September 17, 1897, 
Louise M., born October 3, 1898, and Mabelle E., born November 
3, 1899. 

Mr. Liddle's parents were Alexander and Mary A. (Cummings) 
Liddle. His grandfather, Thomas Liddle, came from Scotland and 
settled in the town of Salem. 

On his mother's side the familv is of Irish descent. 



Amos Loomis, son of Amos and Polly (Wilson) Loomis, was born in 
Washington County, N. Y., May 6, 185 1, and has always been engaged 
in the occupation of farming. 

In November, 1879, he married Mary E. Reed, daughter of James 
and Mary Reed. They have three children, Charles, Herbert and 
Harry. 

Mr. Loomis' father died in April, 1873, in Whitehall. His great 
grandfather, on his inother's side, came from Ireland and settled in 
Whitehall. Mr. Loomis takes an intelligent interest in all public 
affairs, particularly the cause of education, and has held the office of 
school trustee of his district. 



110 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Henry Hall Lovejoy, one of Cambridge's most enterprising and 
progressive citizens, is the o\vner of the Cambridge Foundry, located 
at the east end of the village. 

Mr. Lovejoy was born in Cambridge, Washington County, N. Y., in 
1850, and was educated at the Cambridge Washington Academy. He 
began business for himself in 1885, in company with Lewis P. Worth, 
where the present foundry now stands. Mr. Worth retired in 1886, 
and the business was carried on by Mr. Lovejoy as sole proprietor, 
until 1895, when he admitted his son, Levant Henry Lovejoy, into 
partnership, under the firm name of H. H. Lovejoy & Son, and the 
firm so constituted and known still exists. 

H. H. Lovejoy & Son manufacture the celebrated Cambridge steel 
plow, the Walsh water wheel regulator and many other agricultural 
implements. Their manufacture of plows is very large, over two 
thousand being turned out of their foundry and sold yearly. They are 
also large jobbers in spring-tooth harrows and cultivators. They 
make sawmill supplies and fill large orders for castings, and are rep- 
resented on the road by four traveling salesmen. 

The plant of this concern comprises eight buildings, besides a large 
storehouse close to the Delaware & Hudson Railroad track, and alto- 
gether covers ten acres of ground. 

It is but just to say that since the admission of Levant Henry 
Lovejoy the business has doubled. He is the buyer, and has charge 
of the men. on the road, often taking a trip himself, greatly to the 
profit of the firm. He is a genial and enterprising young man, pos- 
sessed of unusually good judgment. 

Solomon Warner established the foundry business in Cambridge in 
1845. He admitted Hiram H. Lovejoy (the father of H. H. Lovejoy) 
into partnership in 1849. ^^r. Warner died about 1868, and Hiram 
Lovejoy sold the business to Warner & Higgins, who continued it 
until 1875, when A. Walsh bought them out and continued the busi- 
ness until 1885, at which time it was purchased by Worth & Lovejoy. 

The Cambridge foundry is one of the few industrial plants in Cam- 
bridge, being by far the largest and most important establishment. 
The business, which has all along been prosperous, is still rapidly 
increasing and reaching out into broader fields. Their great specialty 
is the Cambridge steel plow, which is being well advertised, and is a 
great favorite on the market. 

The Lovejoy famil}^ have been well known manufacturers for three 



BIOGRAPHICAL. Ill 

generations, and their uniformly high and honorable record as busi- 
ness men has given the name a great prestige, both far and near. 

On November 20, 1872, H. H. Lovejoy married Emma, daughter of 
Abraham and Jane (Skellie) Decker, and they have one son, Levant 
H., who married Lena Rice, daughter of J. B. Rice. 



Elmer D. Lemm, the senior member of the firm of Lemm Brothers, 
has lived in Fort Edward almost all his life, and was educated in the 
schools of Fort Edward. He worked in a paper mill for two years 
and for fourteen years was connected with the grocery trade in New 
York City. He is an honorary member of the Satterlee Hose Com- 
pany and is also a member of the Masonic fraternity. 

On July 5, 1898, Elmer D. Lemm married Phcfibe Jane Minerly. 
His parents were Solomon and Maria Catherine (Sommers) Lemm. 

The firm of Lemm Brothers is composed of Elmer D. Lemm, Asel 
W. Lemm and Adrian V. Lemm, and they conduct both a grocery 
and meat business in Fort Edward. The business was established 
June 21, 1899, and such has been the business enterprise of these gen- 
tlemen, that today this house has not only attained a high reputation 
in business circles, but is one of the leaders in Fort Edward. 

Adrian V. Lemm was married, November 30, 1900, to Ella, daughter 
of Charles T. and Mary (Martin) McLellan. 



Arthur K. Lansing. — Among the most popular young business 
men of Cambridge is Arthur K. Lansing. Mr. Lansing was born 
April II, 1870, at Eagle Bridge, N. Y. He was educated at the Salem 
Washington Academy, the Cambridge Washington Academy, and at 
the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute. 

In 1895 he formed a business copartnership with James P. Robert- 
son, under the firm name and style of Lansing & Robertson. The 
firm began business in the Crocker Building, Main street, Cam- 
bridge, and are retailers of hardware, groceries, paints, oils, and 
they buy and sell farm produce. 

Mr. Lansing is politically a Republican. He is Town Clerk of the 
town of White Creek, and is serving his third year as Clerk of the 



112 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Board of Education of Cambridge Village. He is treasurer of Vigilant 
Lodge No. 699, I. O. O. F., and is Secretary and Treasurer of the 
Cambridge Elgin Creamery Company. 

On September 15, 1897, Mr. Lansing wa<v united in marriage to Amy 
E. Mason of Palmyra, N. Y., daughter of Samuel R. Mason. They 
have two sons, Arthur C. and Samuel M. 

Colonel William R. King, an uncle on his mother's side, was a 
graduate of West Point, and a brave defender of the stars and stripes 
in the sixties. 

Mr. Lansing's father, Jacob C. Lansing, was well and favorably 
known throughout the country. 

Jacob C. Lansing married Louise King, who is the mother of the 
subject of this sketch. 

Arthur K. Lansing's great grandfather, Abram Lansing, was among 
the first settlers in the locality where now stands the city of Lansing- 
burgh, N. Y., the city taking its name from him. 

Mr. Lansing, the subject of this biography, is a young man of enter- 
prise and much business ability. The stand that he has taken in vil- 
lage and town affairs has won the deserved praise of the citizens. He 
is a thorough and hard worker, accomplishing the several civil and 
social obligations resting upon him completely and correctly. 

The store of Lansing & Robertson was used for a postoffice and 
store for about twenty-five years, and is the most centrally located 
place of business in Cambridge. The firm, by push and enterprise, 
good stock and square dealings, has built up a very prosperous trade, 
far exceeding many in Cambridge who have conducted stores for a 
quarter of a centur}'. 



Emeline Liddle was borp in North Argj'le, Washington County, 
and is a daughter of William and Abigail Harris Clapp, which was her 
maiden name She was educated at the public schools and the Fort 
Edward Institute. In 1865 she married J. Eugene Fenton, who was 
a merchant and a prominent Mason. He was born April 13, 1833, and 
died August 11, 1868. On January 5, 1876, Mrs. Fenton married 
William James Liddle, who died May 23, 1890. 

William Clapp, Mrs. Liddle's father, was born January 22, 1813, and 
died March 29, 1895. He was one of the best known men of his day 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 113 

in the town of Argyle, and held different public offices. He was Jus- 
tice of the Peace, was Coroner and County Superintendent, and also 
acted as guardian for many people, settled wills, administered estates, 
etc., and was popularly known as Squire Clapp. His parents were 
Benjamin J. and Asenath (Grover) Clapp. He had no sisters and his 
only brother, Eleazer, died at twenty-two years of age, unmarried. 
The family of William and Abigail Clapp were as follows: Benjamin 
D., Loviise W., Emeline (the subject of this sketch) Lucy H., Abigail, 
Juliette Asenath. Benjamin D. Clapp, brother of Mrs. Liddle, was 
born January 12, 1838, and was for many years teller of the Fort 
Edward National Bank, and was subsequently Cashier of the Platts- 
burgh Bank, until his death. 



Nelson D. Laraway was born on the farm which he now owns, in 
the town of Kingsbury, Washington County, N. Y., March 3, 1862, 
and is a son of Edgar W. and Sarah E. (Willis) Laraway. He was 
educated in the public schools of his native town, and has always pur- 
sued the occupation of farming. Mr. Laraway takes an active interest 
in public affairs, and has been a member of the Board of Election and 
has held the important office of School Trustee. 

On April 17, 1885, Nelson D. Laraway married Jennie Davison, 
daughter of John and Jane (Hunter) Davison. They have had five 
children, two of whom are living, namely : Ruth, born June 21, 1893, 
and Ida M., born February 21, 1899. 

On his mother's side, Mr. Laraway traces his ancestors to Porter 
Smalley and his wife, Hulda. Porter Smalley was born April 19, 
1775, and Hulda, his wife, was born April 22, 1776. They had nine 
children, namely: William I, born May 3, 1800; Chauncey B., born 
May 7, 1805; Dezier, born July 3, 1810; Ormael C, born March 29, 
1816; Joseph T., born January 28, 1798; Lydia, born May 22, 1802; 
Eliza Ann, born April 18, 1808; Rebecca, born May 22, 1813, and 
Lucy D., born May 17, 181 9. 

Mr. Laraway's father, Edgar W. Laraway, was born in the town of 
Kingsbury, February 4, 1839. His mother, Sarah E. (Willis) Lara- 
way, was born December 8, 1838. His grandfather, Ira Laraway, 
was born in Hadley, N. Y., November 11, 1807. His grandmother, 

[oj 



114 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Eliza Ann Smalley, was born in Steventown, April i8, 1808. His 
great-grandfather, Philip Laraway, was born on the Island of Jersey, 
England, December 20, 1757. His great-grandmother, Ruth Smalley, 
was born in Connecticut, September 16, 1764. Mr. Laraway 's great- 
great-grandfather was Elias Laraway, date and place of his birth 
unknown, but he was undoubtedly English, as his son Philip was 
born on the Island of Jersey. 



Hon. John J. Morgan. — Although a young man and a Democrat, 
Hon. John J. Morgan has attained the position of one of the best 
known and most popular public men in this strongly Republican 
county. 

He was born at Fort Edward and was educated in the Union School 
of his native place and at Island Grove Seminary. He began the 
active duties of life as Deputy Postmaster at Fort Edward, under J. 
H. Harris, and retained this position for five years. He then became 
Deputy County Clerk at Argyle, under C. W. Taylor, but at the end 
of six months returned to Fort Edward to accept a position in the 
First National Bank. This was in 1887, and he has remained with the 
bank ever since. 

When it is stated that Mr. Morgan has been a candidate for ofhce 
twelve different times and has never been defeated, the opening par- 
agraph of this article will be thoroughly understood and appreciated. 
He served as Treasurer of the village of Fort Edward for eight con- 
secutive years and had a contest for the office every year. He was 
President of the village in 1896, and was elected by a large majority, 
although he was the youngest man ever elected to the office, and was 
a Democrat, while the village is Republican. He was re-elected in 
1897 by an increased majority, and then, voluntarily relinquished the 
office. In March, 1899. he was elected Supervisor of the town of Fort 
Edward for a term of two years by a majority of 204, although the 
town is nominally Republican by 350, and was speedily made a mem- 
ber of the Equalization Comimittee. 

Although always an ardent Democrat, Mr. Morgan is not an offen- 
sive partisan, which in a great measure explains his popularit}-, but 
besides this he is broad-minded and progressive, quick to see the right 
side of every question, and possessed of the force of character and 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 115 

ability to maintain and sustain tlie right. Then, too, he takes a warm 
personal interest in all public affairs, and is treasurer of the Tri- 
County Firemen's Association (including Warren, Washington and 
Saratoga Counties), and was Chairman of their local Executive Com- 
mittee when the convention was held at Fort Edward, July 4, 1899. 

He has been an active member of the Satterlee Hose Company for 
seventeen years, and has been its President for a number of years. 
He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and of the Odd Fellows, 
also of the Fort Edward Club ; and is treasurer and vestryman of the 
St. James' Episcopal Church, having held the latter office for many 
years. He is at present one of the directors of the new Empire 
Theatre, at Glens Falls. 

Mr. Morgan's parents were Edward P. and Rebecca (Hunter) Mor- 
gan, both of whom are deceased. 

Mr. Morgan is strictly a self-made man, and all his success has been 
achieved entirely by his own unaided efforts and ability. 



Dr. Isaac Thompson Monroe. — The subject of this sketch was 
born January 11, 1843, at South Granville, Washington County, N. Y. 
His parents were Isaac Monroe, M.D., and Mary (Thompson) Monroe, 
daughter of Cephas Thompson, of South Granville. 

Isaac Thompson Monroe received his literary education at the com- 
mon schools and Troy Conference Academy, at Poultney, Vt. He 
then studied medicine with his father for one year, after which he 
studied with Prof. Armsby, of the Albany Medical College, for one 
year. Next he attended the Albany Medical College, and while there 
was resident physician of Albany City Hospital one year. He grad- 
uated from the Albany Medical College December 24, 1866, and began 
the active practice of his profession at West Pawlet, Vt., and suc- 
ceeded his brother. Dr. R. G. Monroe, who died two years afterwards. 
He remained six years in West Pawlet, when he came to Granville in 
1873, where he still resides, and has built up a large and lucrative 
practice. He is the oldest practitioner in Granville, and has been 
Health Officer and also member of the Board of Health for many 
years He is a member of the Washington County Medical Society 
and also of the Masonic fraternity, Granville Lodge No. 55, F. & A.M. 

When residing at West Pawlet he was Superintendent of Schools 



116 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

during the years 1871-72, a position which corresponds with School 
Commissioner in New York State. 

Dr. Monroe has made surgery a specialty. Owing to the very 
frequent accidents in the slate quarries, he has had a very large 
experience in surgical work and has performed many different and 
difficult surgical operations during the last fifteen years. He has 
contributed several valuable articles to Medical Journals, most of 
which treat of specialties in surgery. 

In 1873 Dr. Monroe married Ada J. Burch, daughter of Benjamin 
and Caroline (Douglass) Burch of Hebron, N. Y., and they have one 
daiighter, Edna Monroe. 

Dr. Monroe's father, Isaac Monroe, practiced medicine forty-five 
years in South Granville. He had two brothers, who were physicians, 
namely, Dr. Henry C. Monroe, who is now practicing in Sandy 
Hill, N. Y., and Dr. R. G. Monroe, who, after a brief but bril- 
liant career, died in 1868. 

They trace their ancestry to Dr. Alexander Monroe of Edinburgh, 
Scotland, who was connected with Edinburgh University for many 
years. 

James Monroe, fifth President of the United States, was supposed 
to be connected with this family. 

The Monroes originally came from Scotland and settled in Massa- 
chusetts in the early history of this countr3^ 

Mrs. Monroe's father and mother were of English descent. 

Dr. Monroe had two uncles who were physicians, viz. : Dr. Hiram 
Monroe, who, after a few years practice died, and Dr. Nelson Monroe 
who practiced medicine in Whitehall for 28 years, and in New York 
about eight years, also about fourteen or fifteen 3'ears in Troy, where 
he practiced until the time of his death, in 1886. 



Rev. Thomas M. McLoghlin, pastor of the Church of Our Lady of 
Angels, Whitehall, N. Y.. is a native of Cortland County, N. Y., and 
received his early education in the Homer Academy, N. Y., from 
which he was graduated in June, 1870. In September of the same 
year he entered Mount St. Mary's College at Emmettsburgh, Mary- 
land, from which he was graduated in June, 1873. He then entered 
upon a course of theological studies, which he pursued for four years 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 117 

and was ordained at St. Joseph's Seminary, Troy, N. Y., December, 
1877. Immediately after being ordained he was appointed curate at 
Cortland, N. Y., where his uncle, Very Rev. B. F. McLoghlin was 
pastor and remained there seven years, when he was promoted to 
pastor of th.e Catholic church at Philmont, Columbia County, N. Y. 
This was in October, 1884, and Father McLoghlin remained until 
March, 1893, when he was appointed pastor of his present church at 
Whitehall, N. Y., where he has remained ever since. The church has 
prospered exceedingly under his pastorate. The membership of the 
church comprises about two hundred families, one thousand souls. 

The church was established by Right Rev. J. J. Conroy, D. D., 
January 22, 1868, who was then Bishop of Albany. Rev. J. J. 
McDonnell was the first pastor in charge and was succeeded by Rev. 
James Maney in July, 1892. He remained until his death, February 
10, 1893, when Father McLoghlin was appointed. 

Previous to 1868 the church was both French and English, but was 
divided in that year. 



William McFarland, son of James A. McFarland and Mary E. 
Proudfit, was born in Salem, N. Y., March 4th, 1833. His early life, 
in fact, most of his life was spent in Salem. He attended school in 
the Old White School House, afterwards in the Academy, and began 
work in the old corner store at the age of about eighteen, where he 
spent most of his time till 1893. He was married June 25th, 1873, to 
Margaret R. McFarland, to whom one daughter, Margaret, w^as born 
April 22, 1874. His wife, Margaret R. McFarland, died February 
15, 1888. 

He is a member of the United Presbyterian Church, of which 
church he has served about forty-two years as Trustee, and Treasurer 
for about thirty-five years. In politics he has generally acted with 
the Republican party, holding the office of Supervisor of the town for 
two terms, of Town Clerk five terms, serving as Superintendfent of 
the Poor of Washington County, a term of three years. Also, Trustee 
of the village of Salem for a number of years, and, at this writing, is 
one of the Trustees of Washington Academy; he is also a Trustee of 
the Evergreen Cemetery Association and a member of the Executive 
Committee. 



118 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

He was one of the Directors, and also Vice-President of the 
National Bank of Salem, and, at this writing, is one of the Directors 
of the First National Bank of Salem, and also its Vice-President 

Mr. McFarland has always been a strong supporter of the Fire 
Department, being a member and Treasurer of the Union Engine 
Company for the last thirty years, and he has always been interested 
in the general welfare of Salem. 

His paternal grandfather was a native of Belfast, Ireland. His 
mother's ancestors were among Salem's earliest and most highly 
esteemed settlers. 



James Mock was born in Canada March 2, 1832. His parents were 
Joseph and Sarah Mock. Mr. Mock came to the United States in his 
early youth and was educated in the schools of Essex County, N. Y. 
After leaving school he learned the trade of carpenter, which he has 
followed all his life. 

Mr. Mock married Chloe A. Weatherwax, daughter of Andreas and 
Sarah Weatherwax. They have two children, Jeanette and Hattie. 

Mr. Mock's ancestors were Germans, who came to America at an 
early date. 

He served in the latter part of the Civil War, receiving at its close 
an honorable discharge. 

He is a member of Post Mills, G. A. R., of Fort Edward, N. Y. 



Harvey McKercher was born in South Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y. , March 4, 1862, and was educated in the South Argyle 
District school. He worked on the farm with his father until the 
death of the latter in 1875, after which he continued in the same 
occupation on his own account. In November 1890, Mr. McKercher 
. married Anna Perry of South Argyle, and they have a family of four 
children, namely: Mabel, Bertha, Lottie and Ella. 

Mr: McKercher's parents were John and Katharine (Bell) McKer- 
cher. John McKercher was born in the town of Argyle in 1807 and 
was a son of Daniel. McKercher, who was one of the pioneers in the 
town of Argyle. 

Mr. McKercher is living on the old home place, where he was born 
and always lived. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 119 

John J. Miller was born in the town of Fort Edward. Washington 
County, N. Y., Februarj' i6, 1862, and was educated at a district 
school in Argyle. He has followed the occupation of farming all his 
life and worked with his father on the farm from his boyhood days 
until he was twenty-six years of age, when he went into this business 
on his own account. On January 25, 1888, Mr. Miller married Mar- 
garet J. Bain of Argyle, and they have two children, namely: Law- 
rence W. and Willard J. 

Mr. Miller's parents were Joseph and Mary E. (Rice) Miller. 
Joseph Miller was a native of the town of Fort Edward and his father, 
Joseph Miller, was a native of Ireland. John J. Miller has two 
brothers, William E. Miller and Fred Miller. 

Mrs. Miller is one of a family of three children and is a native of 
the town of Argyle. Her parents were William and Eliza (Irwin) 
Bain. 

Joseph Miller was born April i, 1820, and followed farming in the 
town of Fort Edward all his life, excepting a period of over two 
years when he was a soldier in the Union Army during the War of 
the Rebellion from 1863 to 1865. 



Robert C. McEachron was born in the town of Argyle, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., April 22, 1838, but was educated in the town of 
Hebron, this count3^ In 1861 he went west to Illinois, and in 1862 
enlisted as a Union soldier and served until the close of the war. He 
returned to Argyle in the year 1877, and took up the occupation of 
farming, which he has since pursued. Mr. McEachron has been 
Supervisor of the town of Argyle and is a member of G. A. R. Post 
No. 370. In 1866 Mr. McEachron married Margaret McEachron of 
Argyle and they have a family of three children, namely : Mary E., 
Jennie A. and Reuben S., deceased. Mr. McEachron's parents were 
James M. and Sarah (Morrison) McEachron. Mr. McEachron's grand- 
father was Peter McEachron, who was one of the early settlers of 
Washington County. He was captain of Washington County militia 
and also held the position of deacon of the Soiith Argyle United Pres- 
byterian Church for many years. He was familiarly known as Captain 
Peter and is one of the historic figures of the county. 

Mr. McEachron had a brother, James A., who was also a member 
of the same regiment and died in the service at Harper's Ferry. 



120 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Martin McHugh was born in the town of Jackson, Washington 
County, N. Y., April 22, 1865, and is a son of Patrick and Mary 
(Lyons) McHiigh. 

He lived with his father until 1886, working upon the farm, and in 
1887, he began farming on his own account, which occupation he has 
since pursued. 

On June 9, 1886, Martin McHugh married Anna, daughter of 
Edward and Margaret (Corland) Mulligan. Their children are Mary, 
born October 14, 1888, Henry, born September 4, 1891, and Maggie, 
born January i, 1893. 

Mr. McHugh is one of a family of seven children and his wife one 
of a family of three children. 

In politics he is a Democrat, and is one of Easton's prosperous and 
respected citizens. 



John McCarty was born in the town of Jackson, Washington 
County, N. Y., December 11, 1868, and has pursued the occupation of 
farming all his life. 

On February 12, 1896, Mr. McCarty married Nellie McHugh, 
daughter of Patrick and Mary (Lyons) McHugh. They have three 
children, namely: Helen, born August 15, 1897, John J., born Sep- 
tember 14, 1898, and Martin, born November 28, 1899. 

John McCarty's parents were Owen and Bridget (Cooney) McCarty, 
both of whom were natives of Ireland. 

His father came to America in 1840 and settled in New York, from 
which place he went to Saratoga and later moved into Jackson, where 
he settled permanently. His wife, Bridget Cooney, came to America 
in 1836, and settled in the town of Jackson. 

John McCarty is one of a family of five children. He has two 
brothers, James and Charles, and two sisters, namely: Mary, wife of 
John McMurray, and Kate, wife of Ralph Weir. 

Mr. McCarty is one of the leading Democrats of the town of Jack- 
son, and has always taken an active part in public affairs and public 
advancement. He is a member of the Democratic County Committee 
and one of its most zealous workers. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 121 

George S. Maxwell was born in the town of Jackson, Washington 
County, N. Y., June 26, 1831. He was educated in the common 
schools and at the Academy at Poultney, Vt. 

He was reared on a farm and has followed the occupation of farming- 
all his life. He spent the years from 1857 to 1862 in Pleasant Valley 
Township, Johnson County, Iowa, and in 1862 he enlisted in the 22d 
Iowa Regiment, in which he served from 1862 until 1865, or the close 
of the war. In 1865 he returned to Jackson, where he has since 
resided. 

On December 27, 1854, George S. Maxwell married Margaret Tel- 
ford, and tkey have a family of eight children, namely: George I., 
Mary, William J., Elizabeth, Anna Belle, Robert, David and Charles. 

Mr. Maxwell's parents were George I. and Elizabeth (Small) Max- 
well. His grandparents were John and Janet (McFarland) Maxwell. 
His people came from Scotland, about the year 1787, and 
settled north of Cambridge, six miles in the forest. The farm which 
they then took up is owned by a descendant, and continues in the 
Maxwell name. 



William Moor, one of the representative agriculturists of the 
town of Jackson, was born in this town January 31, 1830. He was 
reared on a farm and has followed the occupation of farming all his 
life, receiving such education as the schools of those early days 
afforded. 

On July 4, 1854, William Moor married Sarah J. Hatch, daughter 
of Solomon and Mary (Archer) Hatch. Mr. Moor's parents were 
Pascal B. and Mary (Dobbins) Moor. 

Mr. Moor is a prosperous but unassuming gentleman, who is highly 
respected by all who know him. 

He has served as road commissioner in his town for the last eleven 
years, and is a consistent member of the Presbyterian church. 



John J. Manville. Vice-President of the Merchants National Bank, 
at Whitehall, and Secretary and Treasurer of the Lake Champlain 
Coal Company, is a son of Murray and Asenath (vSearls) Manville, and 
was born in the town of Whitehall, Washington County, N. Y. He 

[PJ 



122 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

received his early education in the public schools of his native town, 
and afterwards took a special course at the Albany Business CoUe^^e. 
He then entered the service of the Whitehall Transportation Com- 
pany in 1870, which was subsequently merged in the New York and 
Lake Champlain Transportation Company, and later became the Lake 
Champlain Towing- Company. His first duties with this company 
were in the capacity of a clerk, and he. was advanced, from time to 
time, until he is now Cashier and Shipper of the Lake Champlain 
Towing Company, and Secretary and Treasurer of the Lake Champlain 
Coal Company. Aside from his interests in the above named concerns 
he was elected Vice-President of the Merchants National Bank in 
January, 1897. 

Mr. Manville is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., 
and Whitehall Encampment No. 69, I. O. O. F. 

In September, 1878, John J. Manville married Ida, daughter of 
James A. and Eliza (Wilson) Hoyt, and they have four children, 
namely: Maud, Albert, Elsie and Hazel. 

Mr. Manville is a thorough business man, who devotes all his time 
to the various interests in his charge. 



Robert McDowell was born in County Antrim, Ireland, Decem- 
ber 23, 1839. His parents were John and Rose (Kernohan) McDowell, 
and were of Scotch-Irish lineage. His mother is still living on the 
old homestead in Ireland, having reached the advanced age of ninety- 
two years, in the full possession of her faculties. 

Robert McDowell came to America in 1857, and established himself 
on a farm near Salem, N. Y., where he went into the cultivation and 
raising of flax. His activities, however, soon extended beyond the 
limits of his farm, and in 1868 he became a commission merchant, 
dealing extensively in potatoes, butter and cheese. 

In 1889 he was appointed Superintendent of laborers at the State 
Capitol, in Albany, and continued in that capacity until the completion 
of the Capitol in 1899. He is now living in Salem, where he buys 
large quantities of potatoes for shipment to New York, Boston and 
Philadelphia. 

Mr. McDowell is a staunch Republican, but has never allowed his 
name to be used by his party for public office. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 123 

On June 6, 1856, Robert McDowell married Elizabeth Reyne, and 
they have had four children, only two of whom are now living, 
namely: John A., born in 1859, and Libbie, born in 1863. 



Homer B. Martin is a son of Horace B. and Mary E. (Hughes) 
Martin, and was born at Grand Isle, Vermont, in September, 1857. 
When he was one year old his parents removed to Philadelphia, Pa., 
where they resided for two years, then going to Trenton, N. J., 
where they remained one and one-half years, then to Jersey City, N. 
J., where the}^ remained two years. In 1868 they finally settled in 
Whitehall. Mr. Martin's father was a boat builder in Whitehall and 
followed this occupation until his death. Homer B. Martin's first 
business experience was as a clerk for H. B. Skeels, in whose employ 
he remained for three j^ears, after which he was emplo^^ed as cabin 
boy on a steamer and rose to the position of assistant pilot, serving six 
seasons in all. He then accepted a position as clerk for A. M. Bur- 
dett, where he worked three years, after which he formed a partner- 
ship with E. M. Skeels, under the firm name of Skeels & Martin in 
the meat business. This firm continued in business for seven years, 
when Mr. Martin sold out his interest and opened a grocery and mar- 
ket on his own account, establishing the business which he has since 
conducted so successfully. He is also a dealer in grain, hay, etc. 

In December, 1882, Mr. Martin married Clarissa A., daughter of 
Harvey and Hanna (McFarren) Bartholomew. They have three chil- 
dren, namely: Homer, Harvey B., and Stella G. Mr. Martin is a 
member of Tancred Lodge, No. 69 Knights of Pythias, Whitehall 
Lodge, No. 5, I. O. O. F., and also of the Canton. He takes a lively 
interest in public affairs and has held the office of Village Trustee 
and is now a member of the school board. 



George L. Marsh.\ll is the son of Robert and Margaret (Law) 
Marshall and was born in the town of Jackson, Washington County, 
N. Y., in the year 1844. He received his education in the district 
schools of his native place, at the Washington Academy, Cambridge, 
and the Troy Business College. After completing his education he 
returned to his father's farm, a large place of about five hundred 



124 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

acres, situated on the Cambridge and Arlington road, and after his 
father's death in 1876 he took the entire management of the place 
and although subsequently his talents have carried him into other 
channels of activity, he still owns this fine farm with its handsome 
old homestead. 

Mr. Marshall was from the first an active Republican and repre- 
sented the town of Jackson as Supervisor in the years 1883, 1884 and 
1885. In the autumn of 1885 he was elected sheriff of Washington 
County and held that office for a term of three years. In 1889 he 
moved to vShushan and bought an interest in the West Arlington 
Brush factory. Ten years later his partner James F. Williams died. 
The establishment turns out yearly over $30,000 worth of brush backs 
and brush handles, and employment is given to twenty men. Mr. 
Marshall has the entire management of the business, although the 
firm name still remains Williams & Marshall. 

In March, 1872, Mr. Marshall was united in marriage to Miss 
Hannah J. Law of Salem, N. Y. 



William B. Madison, M. D., one of the leading physicians of Wash- 
ington County, was born at West Hebron, Washington County, N. Y., 
November 8, 1856. He was educated at the West Hebron Academy, 
at the Salem Academy and at the Albany Medical College, from which 
he was graduated in the year 1880. 

In 1 88 1 Dr. Madison began the practice of his profession at West 
Hebron, where he has since resided, and where he has achieved a high 
reputation as a medical practitioner. 

Dr. Madison's parents were Dr. John H. and Margaret (Brown) 
Madison. Dr. John H. Madison practiced medicine in Hebron for 
upwards of fifty years. 

The family is of Scotch descent, but has been an American one for 
generations. 



Rev. Willard S. McEachron was born in the town of Argyle, 
Washington County, N. Y., March 17, 1855. He was educated in the 
schools of West Hebron and Salem, N. Y., at Princeton College and 
in the Theological Seminary at Princeton. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 125 

On December 20, 18S1. he took charge of the North United Presby- 
terian Church at West Hebron, where he has since ministered with 
the most gratifying success. He is not only earnest and enthusiastic, 
but ardent in his work, and is one of the most popular divines in this 
part of the state. 

On October 14. 1SS5, Rev. Willard S. ]\IcEachron married Carrie P. 
Harsha, who died October 8, 1889. 

Mr. McEachron's parents were Alexander and Nancy (McGeoch) 
McEachron. The family is of Scotch descent, from which country 
Mr. ^McEachron's grandparents came. (See also town of Hebron). 



S.ARDis Mitchell was born in Blanford, Hamdon County, ^lassa- 
chusetts, in May, 1821, and is a son of Moses and Ann (Knox) Mitchell. 
He was educated in the district schools of his native town and was 
first engaged in the manufacture of spokes and handles, which occu- 
pation he followed for ten years. In 1S44 he removed to the village* 
of Whitehall, where he carried on the same business for a period of 
ten 3^ears, and then settled upon his farm, where he has since resided. 

On October 2, 1845, Mr. Mitchell married Mary Ann, daughter of 
Reuben and Mary (Stickney) Juckett. In 1895 they celebrated their 
golden wedding. They have two children, namely: Celestia M., wife 
of George DeKalb and William D. Mitchell. 



Charles Mellon was born in the City of Montreal, Dominion of 
Canada, April 12, 1S40. His parents were Michael and Mary Jane 
(Preston) Mellon. 

After his school days he went into the business of speculating in 
wood, which he followed successfully for twenty years, when he 
branched oft" into farming, which he has since pursued. 

He takes an active interest in town aft'airs, and represented Dresden 
on the Board of Supervisors for two years, being the only Democrat 
on the Board during the time of his service. 

On July I, 1 868, Charles Mellon married Martha Benjamin, daughter 
of Burr and Lucv Beni'amin. 



126 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Rev. Michael F. McCarthy was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, 
September 27, 1862, and is a son of John and Margaret (Sullivan) 
McCarthy, both of whom were natives of the City of Cork, Ireland. 
John McCarth}' was a contractor in Chelsea, in which he settled 
in 1850. 

Rev Michael F. McCarthy was educated at the public schools of 
Boston, from which he graduated, and then entered St. Charles Col- 
lege, Baltimore, Md., for the study of classics. He then took a course 
of stud}^ in St. Joseph's Seminary, Troy, N. Y., and after having com- 
pleted all his studies was ordained a priest June 10, 1888, at the 
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Albany, N. Y., by the Right 
Rev. Bishop McNeirny. 

His first charge was St. Joseph's Church, Albany, N. Y., under 
Bishop Burke, who was then Vicar General of the Albany Diocese. 
There he remained until April 22, 1899, when he was sent to Saratoga, 
after the death of Father J. J. McDonnell, to act as administrator of 
the parish. In the fall of 1899 he was appointed pastor of the Church 
of our Lady of Mount Carmel, at Middle Granville, N. Y., his parish 
also including an out mission at West Granville. 

The parish at Middle Granville is thirty-two years old, and the 
church was built by the people before they had a priest, and they 
asked for one when they had the church built. The first pastor was 
the Rev. W. B. Hannett, who was succeeded by Rev. John Hayden, 
whose pastorate extended over a period of twenty-one years. He 
was succeeded by Rev. J. P. O'Connor, who had charge from 1895 
until 1899. 

The out mission at West Granville is the oldest in northern New 
York. The little church in which people came miles to worship, over 
sixty years ago, is still attached to the present church there. In those 
days everybody walked or drove to the service, for twenty miles 
around, and the priest came to West Granville to say mass. The 
present church at West Granville was built in 1858. 

The congregation at Middle Granville embraces about sixty-five 
families, and the out mission at West Granville about fifty-six fam- 
ilies. Both churches are in a flourishing condition, and out of debt. 

The church edifice at Middle Granville and the rectory are built of 
brick and are located in a commanding position on Dayton avenue, 
overlooking from their prominent location the beautiful valley of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 127 

Mettowee. The church interior is strikingly beautiful, all the win- 
dows being ineniorial windows, and the stations handsome oil paintings. 
[Rev. Father McCarthy died since the above was written.] 



ALEX.A.NDER McGeoch was bom in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., October 8, 1868, and was educated at the Argj^le 
Academy, from which he was graduated in 1869. After completing 
his education he took up farming, which he has made his life's voca- 
tion. On December 18, 1892, Mr. McGeoch married Agnes Foster, a 
native of Shushan, and who graduated from the Cambridge Academy 
in 1892. They have one son, J. A. McGeoch. Mr. McGeoch's parents 
were John and Mary L. (Fullerton) McGeoch. His grandparents were 
Alexander and Jennet McGeoch, who were natives of Scotland. 



Joseph McMillan, M. D. — Dr. McMillan, one of the most popular 
and professionally successful physicians and surgeons of Washington 
County, was born in the town of Jackson, this county, on the farm of 
his father, July 12, 1869. He first attended school at what was known 
as the Red School House, which stood near his father's residence, and 
subsequently prepared for college at the Washington Academy, Cam- 
bridge. He then took a course in Cornell College, after which he 
entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, which is 
the medical department of Columbia College, and was graduated in 
the class of 1894. Immediately after graduating he accepted a posi- 
tion on the medical staff of the Vanderbilt Hospital, where he served 
for three years, and during a period of four years he spent a greater 
part of the afternoon of each day as physician and surgeon at the 
Presbyterian Hospital. He was also on the staff of the Manhattan 
Eye and Ear Hospital for a period of two years. While holding all 
these positions he was a regular practicing physician in New York 
City, with an office on 47th street. In 1S99 Dr. McMillan caine to 
Cambridge and established his office centrally on Main street, and 
from the very outset met with a very gratifying success. In addition 
to being a regular physician and surgeon, he is a specialist on the eye, 
ear and throat. 



128 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Dr. McMillan is a son of Morrison McMillan and Mary (Robertson) 
McMillan. His grandfather, John McMillan, was a captain in the War 
of 1812. 

As the name would indicate, the McMillans are of Scotch descent, 
and Dr. McMillan's ancestors were among the very early settlers in 
Washington County. His brother, John L. McMillan, is the inventor 
of the McMillan typesetting machine. 



Warren H. Middleworth. — The subject of this sketch was born 
at Sandy Hill June 4th, 1848, and was educated at the Fort Edward 
Institute. His first business experience was in the livery line which 
he followed successfully for ten years. In 1882 he began his career 
as a hotel man in which he has shown great enterprise. In the year 
named he leased and remodeled the Diamond Point Hotel on Lake 
George. 

In 1884 he built the Agawam hotel, which was destroyed by fire in 
1890, but which he rebuilt and opened again in 1891, and has since 
conducted as a summer hotel, one of the finest resorts on the historic 
lake, which has become one of the most favorite watering places 
in this state. 

Mr. Middleworth's parents were Henry V. and Oril (Weatherbee) 
Middleworth. Henry V. Middleworth was a native of Washington 
County, having been born at Greenwich in 181 3, and was one of the 
most prominent men of Sandy Hill up to the time of his death. He 
built the Middleworth block in that village, which is still the largest 
business structure in the corporation. His wife was a daughter of 
Captain Weatherbee who was a distinguished soldier in the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

Warren H. Middleworth married on May 27, 1870, Eunice, daughter 
of Perry and Sophia (Ives) Scoville. They have five children living, 
namely : Henry V., Wilbur R., Grace M., Maud M. and LeRoy E. 

Mr. M*iddle worth is a member of Bolton Landing Lodge, No. 556, 
I. O. O. F., of the Royal Arcanum and of the Episcopal Church. In 
politics he is Democratic, but has never sought office, yet he has 
attained distinction in political campaigns as a writer and singer of 
campaign songs. He is a warm advocate of silver and also of the 
great exponent of bi-metalism, Hon. W. J. Bryan. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 129 

O. H. MoTT, M. D., was born in Old Saratoga, Saratoga County, 
N. Y., and was educated at the Collegiate Institute in Saffield, Conn., 
and the New York Homoeopathic College, from which institution he 
was graduated in the class of 1873. He first began the active practice 
of his profession at Glens Falls, N. Y., where he was located from 
April until October, 1S73, at which time he settled permanently in 
Fort Ann. Here he has since pursued his profession continuously, 
except for a few months when he took a trip to South America and 
through Brazil. 

Dr. Mott is a prominent Mason, a member of Mount Hope Lodge, 
Fort Edward Chapter, Washington Council, Whitehall, Washington 
Commandery and the Oriental Temple of the Mystic Shrine at Troy. 
He is also a member of the Albany County Medical Society, of the 
Washington County Medical Society and the New York State Homoeo- 
pathic Society. 

His parents were Lafayette and Mary (Weston) Mott. His ances- 
tors were originally French-Huguenots, who immigrated to Holland 
Tvhence some of their posterity came over to Manhattan Island. From 
Manhattan Island the family came to Dutchess County, N. Y., and 
from Dutchess County the Doctor's grandfather, Jesse Mott, moved 
into Saratoga County, of which he was one of the early settlers. 



William B. Melick, M. D.— The subject of this sketch was born 
in Albany, N. Y., October 19, 1858, and received his literary educa- 
tion in the Albany High School and Williams College, graduating 
from the latter institution in the class of 188 1. He then took a medi- 
cal course in the Albany Medical College and was graduated in the 
class of 1884, at the end of an unusually creditable course. After 
graduating he spent a year and a half in the Albany Hospital and 
subsequently took a post-graduate course in the University of New 
York. In the fall of 1885 he established himself in Fort Edward, 
where for the past fifteen years he has successfully continued the 
practice of his profession and has attained a high reputation as an able 
physician and surgeon. 

He is a member of the State Medical Society, of the Glens Falls, 
Sandy Hill and Fort Edward Medical Society, of the Saratoga Medi- 

[qJ 



130 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

cal Society and- of the Washington County Medical Society, of which 
he is an ex-president. He is also a prominent Mason, a member of 
Fort Edward Lodge, No. 267, F. & A. M., Fort Edward Chapter No. 
171, R. A. M., Washington Commandery No. ;^;^, K. T., Saratoga 
Springs, and of the Imperial Council Mystic Shrine, Oriental Temple 
of Troy, N. Y. 

In politics Dr. Melick has always been a staunch Republican and 
has taken an active part in the public affairs of Washington County, 
always being in line with the regular organization. 

On September 5, 1888, Dr. Melick married Rose L. Mory, and they 
have one daughter, Ruth. His parents were James H. and Ruth 
(Breese) Melick of Wyoming, Penn. 

Some of his mother's ancestors were in the Wyoming massacre 
when the Indians devastated the Susquehanna valley, and ancestors 
on both sides were soldiers in the Revolutionary War. An ancestor 
on his mother's side also fought in the Battle of Hastings. 

His grandfather was one of the original signers of the Federation 
of the General Association of the State of Penns3dvania. His ances- 
tors on his father's side were Germans and came from Koblentz and 
settled in New Jersey. The first representative was Jacob Mehleck, 
now spelled Melick. On his mother's side, his ancestors came from 
England and settled in Connecticut about the year 1630. 

Dr. Melick owes his large practice and popularity, not onl}' to his 
well known success as a physician and surgeon, but also to his 
geniality and the fact that he keeps abreast of the times, not only in 
his profession, but on all public questions of the day. 



George H. McFarland was born in Cambridge, Washington 
County, N. Y., March 30, 1837, being the second son of Samuel and 
Martha (Hill) McFarland, grandson of James and Nancy (Thomas) 
Hill, and great grandson of Captain Alexander Thomas, who served 
with distinction during the War for Independence. 

Mr. McFarland was educated principally at the Cambridge Wash- 
ington Academy, where he was a pupil of Rew Charles S. Robinson, 
the distinguished Presbyterian clergyman and writer of hymn books. 

After leaving school Mr. McFarland entered the employ of Charles 
Porter, a well known merchant of Cambridge. Shortly after he went 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 131 

to Troy and was associated with William B. Fry & Son, with whom 
he remained until the business was discontinued, on the death of Mr. 
Frv. Mr. McFarland then became a partner in the firm of George 
Bristol & Company. He withdrew from this firm in 1866 and went 
to New York, where he was associated with H. B. Claflin & Company. 
Later he became a partner in the dry goods firm of F. N. Hamlin & 
Company, of Chicago, he being the New York representative of 
the firm. 

While in Troy, in 1862, Mr. McFarland enlisted in Company G, 24th 
Regiment, National Guard, and served with it until he left Troy 
in 1866. 

Mr. McFarland has now retired from active business, and while he 
spends some time in New York, his home is in Cambridge, just out- 
side the corporate limits of the village. 

He has been quite active in the affairs of his town, serving two 
years as Excise Commissioner, and at the present writing is President 
of the Board of Trustees of Woodlawn Cemetery Association, of Cam- 
bridge ; a member of the Board of Education; a member of the Board 
of Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and one of the Direc- 
tors of the Cambridge Village Improvement Association. 

Mr. McFarland is also a member of the Empire State Society, Sons 
of the American Revolution. 



Edward P. Newcomb is a native and life-long resident of White- 
hall, Washington County, where he was born October 28, 1856. He 
was educated in the public schools of his native place and at the Epis- 
copal Institute at Burlington, Vermont, where for two years he stood 
at the head of the school. Returning to Whitehall from school at 
Burlington he engaged in the lumber and transportation business, 
being associated with his elder half brother, Robert H. Cook. Since 
that time he has been constantly engaged in the transportation busi- 
ness and has been Secretary and Treasurer of the New York & Lake 
Champlain Transportation Company since 1885. 

In politics Mr. Newcomb has always been an ardent Republican, 
standing high in the councils of his party and always giving it his 
earnest and effective support. He has been President of the village 
of Whitehall for two terms and is now President of the Board of Edu- 
cation, a position he has held for the past ten years, as the result of 



132 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the deep and intellig-ent interest which he takes in educational mat- 
ters. He has also held the position of Town Clerk and was appointed 
special agent of the Postal Department under President Arthur, 
serving- in the northwest. He is also a prominent Mason and is a 
member of all branches of that order; a member of Phoenix Lodge, 
No. 96, F. & A. M., Champlain Chapter No. 25, R. A. M., Washing- 
ton Council, No. 52, Washington Commandery No. :^^, Saratoga 
Springs, Oriental Shrine at Troy, N. Y. He has been Worshipful 
Master of Phoenix Lodge and was also District Deputy of the Masonic 
District including Washington County. 

Mr. Newcomb is not only an enterprising and successful business 
man, but is one of the best known and most popular citizens of 
Washington County. He is alwa^^s interested in every project look- 
ing toward the advancement of his community and county and all 
such receive his unstinted support. Not only in business, but in 
every public office he has held, he has faithfully directed the energies 
of an unusually bright and comprehensive mind to the duties which 
lay before him, and alwaj^s with the most pronounced success. 

On September 15, 1880, Mr. Newcomb married Jennie Watson of 
Whitehall, and they have a fam.ily of three children, namely: Robert 
C, Kenneth Watson and Georgia Aileen Newcomb. 

Mr. Newcomb's parents were Dr. John E. and Fannie (Boynton) 
Newcomb. Dr. John E. Newcomb was a native of Dutchess County, 
and settled in Whitehall, and became not only one of the most distin- 
guished physicians of northern New York, but also a large land 
holder. He was also a man of inventive genius, and invented a 
mowing machine and a reaper, the latter proving a great success. 
He was a descendant from Captain Thomas Newcomb of Revolution- 
arv fame. 



James M. Northup was born in 1867, at Hartford, N. Y. He 
received his early education in the public schools of that place and at 
Eastman's Business College, at Poughkeepsie, from which institution 
he was graduated in 1885. 

In 1893 James M. Northup married Lillian Hodgeman, and they 
have one son, J. Frederick Northup, who was born in 1894; and one 
daughter, Maude Francis Northup, born in 1900. Mr. Northup 
comes from one of the oldest and most highly respected families of 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 133 

Washington County. His parents are H. Davis and Pamelia (Waite) 
Northup. His grandfather settled in Hartford soon after the Revo- 
lutionary War. His grandfather, James M. Northup, was for many 
years the largest potato buyer in Washington County, and a portrait 
of this estimable man appears in another part of this work. 



Charles A. Norton was born in the town of Hartford, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., May 17, 1849, and was educated in the common 
schools of his native place. He has followed farming all his life since 
his boyhood, with the exception of about three years, during which he 
was engaged as salesman in a mercantile business in Hartford and 
at Plainville, N. Y. 

Mr. Norton has always taken an intelligent interest in the progress 
and welfare of his town, and held the office of town collector of taxes, 
has also been Trustee of his School District for several years. He is 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Hartford, and has 
always been friendly to the temperance cause. 

On December 24, 1873, Mr. Norton married Sarah E. Brown. Their 
children are William D., Susie O. and Annie E. 

Mr. Norton's parents were Daniel and Olivia S. (Snow) Norton, 
both of whom were natives of the town of Hartford and always 
resided there. 

Mrs. Norton's parents were William and Mary Ann (Smith) Brown. 



Robert R. Law. — There is no man in Washington County with a 
wider acquaintance than Robert R. Law; indeed, he is generally 
regarded as an authority on men and things of the past and present. 
He was born in the town of Jackson, Washington County, N. Y., No- 
vember 30, 1854, and received his education at the common schools 
and the Cambridge Washington Academy. 

In 1873 he took up the prmter's trade, in the office of the Washing- 
ton County Post. Here his ability was immediately recognized, and 
for several years after serving his apprenticeship the columns of the 
Post were greatly stimulated and enriched by his ready pen. During 



134 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

his early newspaper experience, he took up the study of stenography, 
and without an instructor became so proficient that his services came 
into demand, doing court reporting in March, 1879. 

On August 8, 1884, Mr. Law became a partner in the Washington 
Coimty Post, in company with Hon. James S. Smart, under the firm 
name and style of James S. Smart & Co., and the partnership con- 
tinued until July, 1889, when it was dissolved by mutual consent, Mr. 
Law's stenographic engagements making it necessary. 

On June 14, 1888, he received the appointment of official court sten- 
ographer for the Fourth Judicial District of the State of New York, 
and has continuously held that position up to the present time. 

Mr. Law has been actively identified with the public affairs of 
Washington County for over twenty years. In 1879 he was Clerk of 
the Board of Supervisors; in 1S82 he was elected to the Board of Edu- 
cation, and has been a member of the board ever since. He has held 
the office of Village Clerk, and has several times been sent as delegate 
to political conventions. In politics he is Republican, and a liberal 
supporter of this party. 

When the new High School question was first agitated, Mr. Law 
became at once its champion, and worked unceasingly until his desires 
were consummated, and the handsome and commodious building 
was erected, which is an ornament and a credit to the village of 
Cambridge. 

He was admitted to the bar in 1S91. 

In 1877 Mr. Law married Mary Josepha Woodard of East Green- 
wich, N.Y., daughter of James Woodard, and they have one daughter, 
Ethel. 

Mr. Law's great grandfather. Captain George Gilmore, was a Revo- 
lutionary soldier, and was in the battle of Bennington. 

The Law family came to this country from Ireland in 1789, where 
they had previously lived in Belfast. They were Scoth-Irish, and the 
good, sturdy old blood has shown itself in every generation by the 
prominent and capable men who have distinguished this family. 

Mrs. Law's great-grandfather, John Wier of Cambridge, N. Y., 
was a soldier in the French and Indian wars. He was with Sir 
William Johnson in the Mohawk valley conflicts and had the reputa- 
tion of being the best rifle shot of his time. He was also a Revolu- 
tionary soldier, and on one occasion, learning from Tory relatives that 
the Hessians were enroute to assault the American troops at Benning- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 135 

ton, he went alone, and on foot, from Cambridge to Bennington, 
and informed General Starks of the approach of the British. 
Within a few hours of his arrival, the British columns came in sight 
and General Starks made the micmorable remark to his troops. " The 
Redcoats are ours before night or Moll}^ Starks is a widow." 

A Revolutionary ancestor of Mrs. Law was Captain Alexander 
Thomas of Rhode Island. Amos Woodard, her great-grandfather, 
was also a soldier. 

The ancestry of this family is traced to Richard Woodard, who came 
from Suffolk, England, in 1636, and settled in Watertown, Mass. 

From the foregoing it will be seen that the ancestors of this family 
on both sides played an important part in the history, not only of 
Washington County, but of the United States, and in the historic sec- 
tion of the country where the success of the patriot arms first made 
the independence of the L^nited States possible. 



Owen W. Owen's Sons. — This is one of the best known firms in 
Washington County, N. Y., and the individual members are David 
O. Owen, Robert O. Owen and William O. Owen-, all of whom were 
partners with their father previous to his death. They are extensive 
dealers in slate and their offices are located in the Hays Block, Main 
street, Granville, N. Y. They are all natives of North Wales and 
came to this country in 1884. 

Immediately after he came to this country, Owen W. Owen pur- 
chased a small quarry in Pawlet, Vt., which he developed and to 
which he added by leasing adjacent land. He died in 1890, and the 
business has since been conducted and largely extended by his enter- 
prising sons. 

All the members of this firm are prominent and popular gentle- 
men, socially as well as in a business way, and are members of the 
Ivorites of Middle Granville. 

David O. and Robert O. Owen are both members of the Granville 
Lodge, No. 55, F. & A. M., and also of Sylvan Chapter and the Eas- 
tern Star. 

William O. Owen is a member of the Odd Fellows' fraternity. 
Robert O. Owen is a noted musician and is a pianist from the Boston 
Conservatory of Music. He has played in church ever since he was 



136 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

eleven years of age, and for Welch festivals. He took a national first 
prize in Wales as a pianist when but fourteen years old. He is 
organist for the Welch church at Granville. Their father, Owen W. 
Owen, was also a musician of note and a composer, and was for 
twenty years choir leader in Wales. He was also an enterprising 
and successful business man, as his establishment and development 
of his quarries in Pawlet show. 

In 1892 Robert O. Owen married Mary Williams, daughter of 
Robert Williams, the general superintendent for General Hughes. 
She died in August, 1898, leaving one son, Owen. 

David O. has been married twice. His first wife was Ella Jones, 
sister of Owen D. Jones of Granville, and his second wife was Jennie 
Roberts of Oneida County, N. Y. 

Robert O. was Trustee of the village of Granville for one term in 
1897-98. 

Their mother's maiden name was Ella Evans, and her father, David 
Evans, was a prominent divine in Wales in the Calvinist Methodist 
Church. 



Lewis R. Oatman, M. D., was born in the town of Hebron, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., October 31, 1867, and received his early educa- 
tion in the Union School at West Hebron, N. Y. He then entered 
the Alban}'- Medical College at Albany, N. Y., and was graduated 
from that institution with the degree of M. D., in the class of 1891. 
After graduating he went to Ward's Island Hospital, where he had the 
benefit of a large and varied experience, and in 1892 he located in 
Gloversville, N. Y., where he practiced his profession until the spring 
of 1900, when he came to Greenwich. While at Gloversville Dr. 
Oatman was visiting surgeon at Nathan Littauer's Hospital for four 
years, and was president of the staff of that hospital during the year 
1899. He was a member of the Fulton County Medical Society for 
seven years, and was its president one year. He was also County 
Physician one year, and City Physician for three years. 

Dr. Oatman makes a specialty of surgery, in which he is an expert, 
and has always been eminently successful. 

On September 27, 1893, Dr. Oatman married Agnes E. Morris, 
daughter of Rev. A. W. and Laura (Gilkerson) Morris. They have 
one daughter, Charlotte, born September 24, 1895. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 137 

Dr. Oatman's parents were Isaac H. and Charlotte (Chapman) Oat- 
man. Isaac H. Oatman was born May 17, 1825, and was of Holland 
descent. The Chapmans are of English descent. 

Dr. Oatman is a member of Lone Star Lodge, No. 39, I. O. O. F., 
and in politics is a staunch Republican. 



John O'Neil, proprietor of the well known Temple of Economy, 
one of the finest general stores in Washington County, was born in 
Rutland, Vt., February 19, 1852. He was educated in the public 
schools of his native town, and began the active duties of life in the 
capacity of a clerk in the establishment of W. R. Gilmore, of Rutland, 
with whom he remained for a short time. For the next three years 
he worked on the farm of W. F. Barnes, when he entered the employ 
of the Rensselaer & Saratoga Railroad, in the capacity of Assistant 
Agent, and remained in that office for two years, when he embarked 
in the grocery business on his own account. After conducting this 
business successfully for two years he entered into partnership with 
his brother James, and opened a general store in Burlington, Vt., 
under the firm name of O'Neil Brothers. They continued business 
for two years, when John O'Neil sold out his interest and returned to 
Rutland, where he formed a copartnership with Charles Quigley, 
under the firm name of O'Neil & Quigley. This partnership existed 
for two and one-half years, when they dissolved, and Mr. O'Neil came 
to Whitehall and began his prosperous business career in this place. 
He first opened a high class wholesale and retail liquor store and the 
year following he added a splendid department store, which today is 
said to be the largest in Washington County. The business is divided 
into departments, each in charge of a competent clerk and assistants. 
The business done in this establishment is very large, and Mr. O'Neil 
is universally recognized as one of the most prominent and influential 
citizens and merchants of Whitehall. 

He takes an active part and intelligent interest in all public affairs, 
and held the office of Trustee of the village for two terms. Socially 
he is a member of the Knights of Columbus and of the Catholic Union, 
and in both of these organizations he is prominent. 

In June, 1873, Mr. O'Neil married Anna M., daughter of Thomas 

[rj 



I 



138 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Conlan, and they have a family of three children, namely: Anna, 
Lula and John J. 

Mr. O'Neil's parents came from Ireland in 1839 and settled in Rut- 
land, Vt., where his father was a farmer and contractor. His father 
died in November, 1897, and his mother in November, 1895. 

Mr. O'Neil is a courteous gentleman of affable manners and genial 
address, with whom the transaction of business is a pleasure, and this, 
together with his recognized business sagacity and commercial integ- 
rity, is the secret of his wonderful success. 



Orlin E. Oatman was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y. , February 10, 1853, and was educated at the West 
Hebron Academy and the Fort Edward Institute. He is engaged in 
the mercantile business at West Hebron, which enterprise he estab- 
lished in 1893. 

Mr. Oatman is town Clerk for the town of Hebron, and was elected 
to this office for a term of two years in 1898. 

Orlin E. Oatman married Emma A. Case, and they have one son, 
Orlin L. Oatman. 

Orlin E. Oatman's parents were Isaac H. and Charlotte (Chapman) 
Oatman, the latter deceased. Mr. Oatman's great-grandfather, 
Ebenezer Chapman, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War and was 
with Washington at Valley Forge during that trying winter when the 
patriots held together under great privation and suffering. He was 
also at West Point at the lime when Major Andre was captured. 



John D. Potter was born in the town of Granville, Washington 
County, N. Y., December 7, 1826, and was a son of Gideon and Orra 
(Cook) Potter. He was educated in the district schools, and has fol- 
lowed the pursuit of farming all his life. He has been a very suc- 
cessful farmer and has given a great deal of attention to the dairy 
business, and now has quite an extensive dairy. 

On January 15, 1877, John D. Potter married Gertrude, daughter 
of Edmund and Charlotte (Decker) Whiting. They have no living 
children, their only child dying in infancy. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 139 

Mrs. Potter was born in the town of Hebron, Washington County, 
N. Y., May 30, 1847. She is an earnest member of the Baptist 
Church. Mr. Potter's people have been Quakers for generations. 



Edgar L. Potter was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., May 21, 1855, and was educated at the Fort Edward 
Institute. 

At the age of twelve years he began to learn the drug business 
with J. M. Campbell and remained with him for five years, when he 
bought him out, having Joshua Pike as a partner. Two years later 
he bought out Mr. Pike and has since conducted the business alone ; 
thus at the remarkably early age of seventeen years Mr. Potter was 
partner in a business and at nineteen was sole proprietor. This busi- 
ness he has conducted successfully for twenty-six 5^ears, and has been 
thirty years in the same stand. 

Mr. Potter is one of Fort Edward's most successful and enterprising 
business men, and takes a deep interest in the welfare of the village. 
He is an honorary member of the Durkee Hose Company and has 
been a life-long Republican. He has served the village in the 
capacity of Trustee, and in religious matters is associated with the 
Baptist Church. 

In 1 88 1 Mr. Potter married Ada J. Wing, daughter of A. R. Wing 
of Fort Edward. Mr. Potter's parents were Abel W. and Caroline 
Potter. 



Tho^ias a. Paterson was born in Whitehall, Washington County, 
N. Y., February 6, 1848, and was educated in the public schools and 
Eastman's Business College, Poughkeepsie, N. Y. Mr. Paterson has 
for some years been proprietor of the Hall House, at Whitehall, the 
leading hotel in the village, and one of the best in northeastern New 
York. He is a Democrat in politics, was in the' State Engineer's de- 
partment for six years, and was put in nomination for Member of 
Assembly by his party in 1899. He has been Village Clerk, Village 
Treasurer, and Chief Engineer of the Fire Department. Mr. Paterson 
is also a member of the Masonic fraternity. Phoenix Lodge No. 96, 



140 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Champlain Chapter No. 25, Washington Council No. 52, Washington 
Commandery No. ^s^ ^^^ Oriental Temple, at Troy, N. Y. He is 
also a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I.O.O.F., Tancred Lodge, 
Knights of Pythias, No. 303, and also the Whitehall Steamer Com- 
pany No. 3. 

In 1868 Mr. Paterson married Helen M. Benjamin. Mr. Paterson's 
parents were William and Maria Bush Paterson. He is of Scotch 
descent, on his father's side, but his mother's people have been Amer- 
icans from a very early date. 



Joseph H. Potter, of Salem, N. Y., is a son of T. T. and Helen 
(Tabor) Potter, and was born in Mechanicville, N. Y., in 1863. He 
is of English ancestry on both sides; the Potters were among the 
earliest settlers of Rhode Island. In 1872 Mr. Potter's parents moved 
to Salem, and his education was accomplished at the Washington 
Academy in that village. Upon leaving school he went into partner- 
ship with A. J. Haggart, and conducted a general merchandise store 
with him in Salem for six years, at the expiration of which time he 
relinquished his interest in that firm. In 1893 he established a 
clothing and men's furnishing store, and was so successful in this 
venture that in a few years his business had altogether outgrown its 
quarters on the east side of Main street. Mr. Potter in 1899 con- 
structed the handsome Potter business block on the west side of Main 
street, and now occupies the southern store with his clothing house, 
which is one of the largest and most enterprising in Washington 
County. He is a member of Salem Lodge No. 391, F. & A. M., and 
of Salem Lodge No. 45, I.O.O.F. In 1889 he was united in marriage 
to Mrs. Mary Billings Cleveland, of Salem, and has one daughter, 
Jennie Billings Potter, who was born in 1891. 



Leonard Church Piser, one of the most prominent manufacturers 
of Washington County, N. Y., is a son of Martin P. and Mary E. 
(Church) Piser, and was born at Pittstown, Rensselaer County, N. 
Y., October i, 1849. His father was a farmer and he was reared on 
the farm, but received a liberal education at Fort Edward Collegiate 



BIOGRAPHICAL 141 

Institute. In 1872 he came to Shushan and settled permanently. 
He was employed as clerk in a clothing- house until 1877, when he 
engaged in selling sewing machines and also began the manufacture 
of shirts by having them made by many of those to whom he sold 
machines. In 1880 he rented the Hedges sawmill, which he 
remodeled and fitted up for a shirt factory and cominenced the manu- 
facture of shirts on his own account. This undertaking was a success 
from its inception under Mr. Piser's able management, and he now 
employs a force of 200 hands in his factory, besides giving employ- 
ment to several hundred more at their homes. 

This mill building is an historic one. A dam at Shushan was con- 
structed in the first years of the nineteenth century by Bethuel 
Church, a great-grandfather, and the mill w^as used as a sawmill until 
bought by Mr. Piser. The dam has. a water power of about four 
hundred horse power. 

Besides building up a fine manufacturing establishment, which has 
been of incalculable benefit to Shushan, Mr. Piser has found time to 
give considerable attention to public affairs and in that way also has 
been a benefit to the village and the surrounding country. He was 
the prime mover for an electric light plant for the village, and the 
project w^as carried through to a successful issue on July 4, 1891. This 
was the first electric light plant erected on the line of railway between 
Troy and Rutland. 

He was a Justice of the Peace from 1875 to 1883, and was elected 
for another term of office, but declined to qualify. 

In May, 1872, Mr. Piser married Emily Halstead, daughter of 
James Halstead of Pittstown, N. Y. They have four children, Theo- 
dore H., Arthur L., .Walter N. and Ralph H. 

Theodore H. Piser was born June 8, 1873, and graduated as an elec- 
trical engineer at Cornell University in 1892. and now resides in Bos- 
ton. 

Arthur Leroy Piser w^as born September 4, 1874, and was educated 
at Wabash College, Ind., on leaving w^hich he went into the shirt 
making business, and is now Superintendent of the Rutland Shirt 
Company's factory at Rutland, Vt. 

Walter N. Piser was born February 2, 1877, and was educated at 
the Union School, Cambridge, N. Y., from which he graduated in 
1894. Soon after leaving school he went into the shirt business with 



142 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

his father in Shiishan, N. Y. In 1898 he was appointed Superintend 
dent of the factory, which position he now holds. 

Ralph H. Piser was born September 14, 1882, and was educated at 
the Cambridge High School from which he graduated in 1899. 

Mrs. Piser died in 1895. Mr. Piser had one brother and two sis- 
ters. His brother, Theodore H. Piser, was born in Pittstown, 
Rensselaer County, N. Y., and was a veteran of the War of the Re- 
bellion. He enlisted in 1861, when only nineteen years old, in the 
125th New York State Volunteer Infantry, and participated with his 
regiment in all its operations until he was finally mortally wounded 
at Spottsylvania Court House, and died in a hospital at Alexandria, 
Va. , in 1865. 

His sisters were Josephine M., who married William Dobbin, and 
now resides in Shushan, and Clarissa E., who resides in Troy, N. Y. 

Mr. Piser's grandfather, Peter Piser, was a native of Germany, and 
came to America with his brother Martin. They settled on the Hudson 
and took up land which they lost through a defective title, after which 
they went to New York and entered into business, but were robbed 
by a dishonest partner. From New York City they went to Pitts- 
town, Rensselaer County, N. Y., and purchased a tract of royal land, 
on which they re'sided all their lives. Peter Piser's son, Martin P. 
Piser, father of the subject of this sketch, was born at Pittstown, this 
state, in 1804, and died in 1866. He married Mary E. Church, who 
died at Shushan, N. Y., in June, 1882, aged sixty-two years. Her 
father Leonard Church, was a lawyer, and one of the early advocates 
of abolition. Her grandfather, Bethuel Church, was one of the early 
settlers and pioneers of Washington County, and built the first house 
in Shushan. 



Edwin C. Pratt, son of Franklin and Elizabeth (Stickney) Pratt, 
was born in Essex County, N. Y., February 15, 1850. When fourteen 
years of age he went to Michigan with his brother, where he remained 
a year and then came to Whitehall, and entered the employ of J. F. 
Clarke as a clerk. He remained in this position for three years, at 
the end of which time he took a position in the store of R. M.Wither- 
bee, and remained with him for the long period of fourteen years, 
when he embarked in the hardware business on his own account, 
under the firm name of E. C. Pratt & Company. The business pros- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 143 

pered from the outset, and this is today the leading hardware estab- 
lishment in Whitehall. 

Mr. Pratt is not only an enterprising and successful business man, 
but takes an active interest in public affairs, and in the promotion of 
everything tending toward the advancement and benefit of his com- 
munity. He has held the offices of Trustee of the Village and Presi- 
dent of the Village. He is connected with both the Masonic frater- 
nity and the Odd Fellows, and is particularly prominent in the latter 
organization. He is a member of Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M. ; 
of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I.O.O.F. ; of Whitehall Encampment No. 
69, and Canton Whitehall No. 54. He has passed through all the 
chairs in the order, and now holds the office of Past Grand Patriarch 
of the State in the Grand Encampment. He is also a member of the 
Whitehall Fire Department, in which he has long taken an active 
interest. 

On September 8, 1873, Mr. Pratt married Mariam, daughter of 
Nehemiah and Maria (Benjamin) Collins. 



Fred Petteys was born in the town of Cambridge, Washington 
County, N. Y., April 25, 1854. He is the son of Ephraim and Elizabeth 
(Ferris) Petteys. 

He received his education in the district schools and at the Green- 
wich Academy, and has always been engaged in the occupation of 
farming as a business pursuit. 

In 1 88 1 he came to the town of Easton and located on his present 
farm. 

On February 22, 1878, Fred Petteys married Maggie McCue. 

Mr. Petteys' ancestors are of Scotch-English descent. He is a prom- 
inent farmer in the town of Easton and is a highly respected citizen. 



TowNSEND J. Potter was born October 30, 1832, and was educated 
in the public schools and at the old Argyle Academy, which still 
exists as the Union school. His father was a farmer and lumberman, 
and T. J. worked on the farm until old enough for the woods, after 
which he was engaged in lumbering with his father until nineteen 



144 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

years of age, when his father retired, and he continued until twenty- 
four years of age with other people. He taught school several win- 
ters in the Fort Edward District Schools. His lumbering experience 
was in Pennsylvania, as well as New York, and included cutting tim- 
ber, rafting, and in fact all branches of that important industry. 

At twenty-four years of age Mr. Potter married, bought a farm and 
followed agricultural pursuits for three or four years, but not finding 
this congenial, he went back to lumbering for two years. In 1863 he 
came to Fort Edward and embarked in the produce and coal business, 
in which he has since been constantly engaged. 

In politics Mr. Potter is a staunch Republican, and has been identi- 
fied with the party since its formation in 1855. He voted for John 
C. Fremont in 1856, and has voted for every Republican president 
since that date. He was a member of the New York Legislature in 
1876 and 1877, and was Supervisor of the town of Fort Edward for 
four years. 

In 1856 Mr. Potter married Elmira Durkee. Mr. Potter's parents 
were Abel W. and Caroline Belle Potter. 

The Potter family is an old American one, and is originally from 
the state of Connecticut. Mr. Potter has always taken a great interest 
in the cause and advancement of education. 



WiLLARD L. Peabody was born in Poultney, Rutland County, Vt., 
August 13, 1839. He was educated in the high school in New Hamp- 
shire, from which he graduated in 1861. He then came to Sandy Hill 
in the same year and began farming. In 1872 he went west, located in 
Denver, Colorado, and engaged in the mercantile business, which he 
continued in that city until 1883, when he returned to Kingsbury and 
also to farming, in which he is still engaged, and in connection with 
which he conducts a considerable dairy business. 

On January i, 1865, Willard L. Peabody married Martha A. Robin- 
son, daughter of Nelson and Olive J. (Martin) Robinson. They have 
two children, namely: Flora M., born May 13, 1870, and now wife of 
Roswell Mitchell, and George N., born December 28, 1879. 

Mr. Peabody's parents were Isaac K. and Clarissa (Gay) Peabody. 
Mr. Peabody's grandfather, Calvin Peabody, canaejrom England and 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 145 

settled in Massachusetts. On his mother's side the family is of Irish 
descent. 

Mr. Peabody is a representative man of the town of Kingsbury, and 
is a member of Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M., and also of the 
Baptist Church. 



Lewis N. Philo was born in the town of Halfmoon, Saratoga 
County, N. Y., June 30, 1843. After his school days, he began the 
active business of life as a clerk in a drug and hardware store for N. 
F. Philo. After spending two years in this position, he embarked in 
farming in which he has since been engaged. He settled in Green- 
wich, Washington County, N. Y. , in the year 1884. 

On ]\Iarch 10, 1868, Lewis N. Philo married Mary F. Saulsbury, 
daughter of Orson and Amanda (Tefft) Saulsbury. 

Mr. Philo's parents were Nicholas E. and Mary F. (Fraly) Philo. 
Mr. Philo's great-grandfather, John Philo, came from England and 
settled in Saratoga County. His son, Asal, the grandfather of Lewis 
N. Philo, was a prominent man of his day in Saratoga County, and 
was Member of Assembly in the State Legislature. 



Albert E. Parant was born in the city of Metz, Province of 
Loraine, Germany, but came to Canada when four years of age and 
resided in that country for a number of years. In 1879, he came to 
the United States and first located in Berlin Falls, N. H.. where he 
took up the study of the chemical department of the pulp business, 
and remained there five years. After this he traveled extensively 
and was employed in Cuba, Florida, West Virginia, Georgia and other 
southern and eastern states, during which time he gave considerable 
attention to steam fitting. 

He came to Fort Edward in 1894, and in 1897 was appointed to the 
position of Superintendent of the Sulphide, in the pulp mill. In pulp 
mills sulphurous acid is used to cook the wood and dissolve the fibers, 
and Mr. Parant is a recognized expert in this department of the man- 
ufacture of pulp. 



146 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In 1887 while living at Berlin Falls, Mr. Parant married Louise 
Tripp of Saratoga Springs, and they have one son, Euclid Parant. 

Mr. Parant's father was Jean Parant and his mother Desinda (Mer- 
cier) Parant. 



Hiram H. Parrish. — The subject of this sketch was born in the 
town of Jackson, Washington County, N. Y., in 1858, and was edu- 
cated in the district schools, Cambridge, Washington Academy and 
Claverick College. As a boy and young man he was always a close 
student of men and affairs. His first work for himself was in the 
capacity of teacher in the district school in Jackson where years 
before he had been a pupil. He was then twenty-one years old. 
Soon afterward he secured the position of bookkeeper in the Cam- 
bridge Valley National Bank and subsequently was made teller of the 
same institution. His strict attention to business and personal popu- 
larity soon interested the citizens of Cambridge, and the Trustees 
elected him Village Clerk, which office he filled with the highest 
satisfaction for nine consecutive years. He was then elected Presi- 
dent of the village and served with distinction for four years. During 
his incumbency as president notable changes and improvements were 
made in the village. He has also served with credit as a member of 
the Board of Education with which he was connected for seven years 
and for five years of that time was President of the Board. 

His parents, being ardent Presbyterians, Mr. Parrish early took 
great interest in that church and its work and for fourteen years he 
has been an elder in the United Presbyterian Church. He has also 
held several offices in the United Presbyterian Church Society out- 
side of the congregation of which he is a member, and he is still 
known in church circles throughout the state and has frequently been 
a delegate to church synods. 

In 1890 Hiram H. Parrish married Eleanor Maxwell of Salem, N. 
Y., daughter of John J. and Jane (McGeoch) Maxwell. They have 
two children, namely: Malcolm Maxwell Parrish and Mary Eleanor 
Parrish. 

Hiram H. Parrish is a descendant of Josiah Parrish, an English sea 
Captain who gave up his ship and settled in Connecticut, marrying 
Elizabeth Plant of that state. To them were born six children, 
namely: John, Josiah, Hannah, Susan, Sibyl and Lizzie. Later he 



BIOGRAPHICAL 147 

moved to Hebron, N. Y., four miles north of Salem village, N. Y., 
on which farm he was buried in 1796, aged 90, in a family burying 
ground beside his wife. 

His son John lived and died on this farm and is buried in the same 
plot. He had seven children, five sons and two daughters. Hiram, 
the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, about fifty years ago 
settled in Jackson on the turnpike, two miles north of Cambridge vil- 
lage where his son Henry, the father of Hiram H., still resides. 

Josiah Parrish, Sr. , was a member of Captain Hamilton's Company 
and of Colonel Webster's Regiment during the Revolutionary War. 



M. Pickett was born in Saratoga County, but has passed his life in 
Washington County. He was born March 8, 1859, and was educated 
at the Union School of Sandy Hill. 

His entire life-w'ork has been in connection with Allen Brothers 
Company at Sandy Hill. He began work in the paper mill in 1877^ 
and is now timekeeper and paymaster for Allen Brothers Company. 

In 1880 M. Pickett married Louisa Brennenstuhl of Rensselaer 
County, and they have two children, Lewns and Gertrude. 

Mr. Pickett's parents w^ere Lewis and Mary D. (Silverthorn) 
Pickett. Lewis Pickett came to Sandy Hill in 1862, and was con- 
nected with the mills of this place for thirty-three years. He is still 
living and resides at Sandy Hill. He is of Scotch descent, and the 
Silverthorns are of German ancestry. 

M. Pickett is an active, intelligent and enterprising man. When he 
first became associated with the paper mills he began at the bottom 
and has gradually worked himself up to his present responsible posi- 
tion, which he has held since 1890. 

He is a member of Sandy Hill Lodge, No. 372, F. & A. M.,, and in. 
politics is a Republican. 



John Lovejov Pratt, one of the representative and prosperous 
citizens of Washington County, was born in the town of Cambridge, 
near the old King Church, in 1824. He attended the district schools, 
and Greenwich Academy, and began life as a farmer, and had held 



148 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the offices of Justice of the Peace and Justice of Sessions when he was 
thirty-six years of age. 

In 1866 he, with his family, moved to Canterbury, Del., where he 
resided nine years. He was twice sent as deleg-ate to the Delaware 
Republican State Convention held at Dover. 

At the time Mr. Pratt was in Delaware the anti-abolitionist feeling 
was very high, and his general Republicanism and feeling for the 
negro was so evident that vigilance committees threatened his life and 
ordered him away. At one time a negro was accused of murder, 
which y/as equivalent to a sentence of death. Mr. Pratt championed 
his cause, proved an alibi and saw the colored man go free. 

He and his family returned to Washington County in 1874, where 
they have since resided, near Buskirk's Bridge. 

On December 22, 1847, John Lovejoy Pratt married Mary A. Brown, 
of Buskirk's Bridge, daughter of Sylvester Brown, a large land owner 
and successful speculator in western lands. Mrs. Pratt died in Feb- 
ruary, 1896. They had five children, namely: Howard B., a railroad 
engineer, who resides in Wisconsin ; Amasa, a farmer, residing in 
Nebraska; John D., Jr., a lawyer, residing in Cambridge; and Charles 
Sumner, deceased, who was a civil engineer in Colorado. Fannie M. 
married Charles King, and lived on the homestead. 

Rev. Amasa Pratt, father of the subject of this sketch, was a Meth- 
odist clergyman, and was at one time School Commissioner. Nathan 
P., a great grandfather, was a private in the Revolutionary War, and 
fought in the battle of Bunker Hill. He was a son of David and 
grandson of Thomas Pratt, of Framingham, Mass. Nathan P. had 
two sons and one daughter. The daughter was married to Isaac Put- 
nam, of Suffolk, Conn. Elias P., a brother of Nathan, was a Captain 
and served through the Revolutionary War. The Pratts of every gen- 
eration have been intensely patriotic, and have always shouldered the 
musket at the first call from their country. 

Mr. Pratt's mother was Fannie King, daughter of Captain William 
R. King, a West Point graduate, and a noted fighter of the civil war. 

John L. Pratt has been twice married. For his second wife he 
married Mrs. Sophia Collins, widow of C. S. Collins, who was at one 
time assistant editor of the Troy Press, and was a former editor of the 
Rochester Democrat. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 149 

John Hermon Pepper was born at Middle Granville, N. Y., June 
28, 1866, and is a son of Chauncey Hamilton and Amelia (Andrews) 
Pepper. He was educated in the public schools of his native place 
and at the Troy Conference Academy at Poultney, Vermont. After 
he completed his schooling he returned to Middle Granville and 
engaged with his father in the manufacturing of brick, with which he 
has ever since been identified, and in which he has achieved success 
and become one of the noted manufacturers of northern New York. 
His father died October 9, 1892, and he succeeded to the entire busi- 
ness. This yard is known as the Middle Granville brick yard. 
■ On December 30, 1892, Mr. Pepper married Hattie M., daughter of 
Sanford and Catharine (Griffith) Cook. They have a family of four 
children, namely: Alice Marian, Florence Hermione, Lynn Hamilton 
and Sanford Boyd Pepper. 

Mr. Pepper's grandfather settled on the farm now occupied by 
John Hermon Pepper and not only carried on farming but began the 
manufacture of brick in 1849, which he carried on until 1852, when he 
was succeeded by his son, Chauncey Hamilton Pepper. 

The Pepper family is of English extraction, but has been an Amer- 
ican one for generations. 

Mr. Pepper has never held or aspired to public office, his entire 
time being taken up with his extensive business affairs, yet he has 
many friends and is one of the most popular business men of the 
county ; neither is he a club man, preferring the society of his own 
family with whom he spends his leisure hours. In all his business 
dealings he is upright and honorable and his word is considered as 
oood as gold wherever he is known. 



Lyman Rathbun, son of Kenyon and Peilina Rathbun, was born 
in the town of Easton, Washington County, N. Y., on the farm where 
he now resides, September 10, 1836. He was reared on the farm, and 
his early education was obtained in the public schools of his native 
town. At the age of twenty-four, he embarked in farming on his 
own account, and on December 24, 1882, he married Deborah, daugh- 
ter of Harvey and Ruth Tubbs. 

Lyman Rathbun is one of a family of nine children, four sons and 
five daughters. His brothers' names were Hiram, Paul, deceased. 



150 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Stephen, deceased. His sisters' names were Anna, Julia, Lois, 
deceased. Patience and Mary. 

Mr. Rathbnn's grandparents were Panl and Patience Rathbun. 
The family originally came from Rhode Island, and is one of the 
oldest and most highly respected in Washington County. Mr. 
Rathbun himself, has not only been a very successful farmer, but is a 
man whose career has been characterized throughout by high integ- 
rity and honest dealings with all men, so that he is very popular and 
highly respected, and has many friends all over this part of the state. 



Horace L. Rogers, the second son of James Rogers, was born at 
Greenwich, Washington County, N. Y., February 14, 1855. He was 
left without a mother in 1866, when only eleven years of age, and his 
father died nine years later. He became a mechanic and settled in 
Fort Miller, where he is a practical iron and steel roofer. In 1894 he 
was elected to the office of Justice of the Peace in the town of Fort 
Edward, and was re-elected in 1898, and again in 1901. He has in his 
possession and is the owner of the family cane, which is of Malacca 
wood, with ivory head and silver trimmings, and with the letters J. R. 
traced thereon. 

In 1876 he married Hattie D. Sherman, daughter of Asa Sherman, 
and they have had a family of six children, three of whom are now 
living. 

James Rogers, great grandfather of Horace L. Rogers, came from 
Connecticut, and was one of the first settlers at Union Village, now 
known as Greenwich. That vicinity was then a wilderness, and James 
Rogers bought, cleared up and cultivated the farm now known as the 
Ira Stevens place. He married Amy Brunson. He was a slave owner, 
and being a pioneer settler, it was his habit to lend seed grain — corn, 
wheat, etc. — to his new neighbors, receiving in return for the same, 
after harvest, one and one-quarter bushels for every bushel lent. 
James Rogers had three sons, David, Solomon and James. He bought 
a farm each for David and Solomon at Whitehall, N. Y., and for 
James (grandfather of the subject of this sketch) he bought a farm at 
Spraguetown, near Greenwich. James married Clarissa Fuller, 
daughter of Ebenezer Fullei-, who was a Revolutionary soldier. Their 
son, James Rogers, was born inVermont and married Isabel Ketchem, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 151 

daughter of Leonard Ketchem, and the subject of this sketch was 
their second son. James Rogers (grandfather) was a soldier in the 
War of 1812. 



William Pitt Reynolds. — The subject of this biography was born 
in Greenwich, Washington County, N. Y., December 7, 1843, and was 
educated in the schools of Greenwich, the Fort Edward Institute and 
the Eastman Commercial College at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., from which 
he was graduated in 1863. 

He began his business career as a clerk, and in 1864 he purchased 
the general merchandise business of his brother, James H. Reynolds, 
at Middle Falls, N. Y., which he has conducted successfully for the 
past thirty-six years, and which he still continues. 

On January 2, 1866, Mr. Reynolds married Harriet, daughter of Dr. 
John R. and Cornelia E. (Dibble) Preston, of Schuylerville, N. Y. 
They have one daughter. Bertha Reynolds. 

Mr. Reynolds has always been an unswerving Republican, has taken 
a lively interest in the success of his party, and was Deputy Postmas- 
ter at Middle Falls for a period of eleven years. 

His parents were Porter and Mary S. (Remington) Reynolds, whose 
grandfather, David Remington, Sr., served his country in the War of 
the American Revolution. 

Mr. Reynolds is one of a family of six children, Amander Porter 
(deceased); Andrew David, who resides in Indiana; James H. (de- 
ceased); Merritt L., of California; Mary S., widow of William S. 
McMaster, of Lockport, N. Y. ; and William Pitt Reynolds, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. His father was an extensive farmer, but kept a 
hotel in his early days. His grandfather was Job Reynolds, a farmer 
and a native of Rhode Island. He came to Washington County and 
built a hotel near North Greenwich, in the latter part of the eighteenth 
century. His great grandfather was Jonathan Reynolds, who came 
to this country from England, settled in Rhode Island, and later came 
to Washington County. 

William Pitt Reynolds has always been an active business man and 
has been unusually successful. Besides his mercantile business he is 
also extensively interested in real estate, and is probably the largest 
landowner in the county. He owns 1,000 acres of farm land, and 



152 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

about twenty tenement houses and business blocks in Middle Falls, 
N. Y. He exercises a personal supervision over all his varied inter- 
ests, exhibiting- an executive ability of a high order. 



Robert Randles was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., September 28, 1835, and has been a farmer all his 
life. He left school in 1853 and went to work on his father's farm 
until he was married, since which time he has successfully followed 
the same occupation on his own account. 

On October 3, i860, Mr. Randies married Frances A. Brown of 
Watertown, Jefferson County, N. Y. They have a family of five 
children, namely: Harvey T., George B., Frederick C, Lillian and 
Margaret M. 

Mr. Randies' parents were Alexander and Mary Ann (Louden) 
Randies. His grandfather was Hugh Randies. 

Harvey T. Randies married Etta Streever of Argyle, and they have 
two children, R. Streever Randies and Frank Stanley Randies. 

Alexander Randies was born April 9, 1791, and died January 14, 
i860. He was a native of Washington County. His wife, Mary Ann 
Randies, was born July 14, 1797, and died April 27, i860. 



Rev. J. A. Reynolds, D. D., was born at Frankford, Ind., Decem- 
ber 9, 1836. He received a classical education at Miami University, 
Ohio, and a theological education at Xenid Seminary, Ohio, and was 
ordained a LTnited Presbyterian minister in 1861. His first charge 
was at Cedar Creek, 111., where he remained nine years, when he 
accepted a call from a church in Rock Island, 111., where he remained 
thirteen years. He then accepted a call to Putnam, N. Y., where he 
is still ministering. Monmouth College, 111., conferred upon him the 
degree of Doctor of Divinity in 1884. 

In November, 1863, Rev. J. A. Reynolds married Caroline 
McMillan. Their children are Bessie, who married Rev. J. B. Story 
of Perth, N. Y., Grace, who married Fred W. Anderson, cashier in 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 153 

the bank at Blue Earth City, Minn., and Paul L. Reynolds, who fills 
a clerical position in Plattsburgh, N. Y. 

Rev. J. A. Reynolds is a son of Rev. John Reynolds and Hannah 
(Van Dyke) Reynolds. His father was of Scotch origin and his 
mother of Dutch descent. 

The Rev. J. A. Reynolds had two brothers who served in the Union 
ranks in the Civil War. One received wounds in battle from which 
he was permanently crippled. The other served his term of enlist- 
ment and came home uninjured. 



John E. Rutledge was born in County Limerick, Ireland, Decem- 
ber 29, 1S54, and came to America with his parents in 1855, and 
landed in Brandon, Yt., April 20 of that year, and here he received 
his early education. In 1868, after leaving school, he took employ- 
ment in a hotel and has been associated with the hotel business ever 
since. He was proprietor of a hotel at Fair Haven, Yt., for the long 
period of fifteen years, and came to Greenwich in October, 1899, and 
purchased the Hotel Hamilton, which is the leading hotel in Green- 
wich and one of the best in this part of the state, under his able man- 
agement. 

Mr. Rutledge is a member of the Royal Arcanum, Good Fellows and 
of the Catholic church. 

In April, 1884, John E. Rutledge married Mary Elizabeth McCaf- 
ferty of Cohoes, N. Y., and they have three children, namely: 
Howard, Cornelius and William. 

Mr. Rutledge's parents were George and Bridget Rutledge. 



John Reil was born in the town of Granville, Washington County, 
N. Y., March 28, 1861, and is a son of Edward and Hannora (Lynch) 
Reil. 

He was educated at Hampton Flats and after leaving school,, 
remained on the farm with his father until twenty-three years of age, 
when he embarked in the hotel business at Middle Granville. This 

[t] 



154 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

business he still conducts and is a highly popular and efficient public 
entertainer. 

Mr. Reil takes a great interest in thoroughbred horses, and besides 
his hotel business, is a horse trainer and race horse driver. He is 
also manager of the Mettowee Driving Park. He owns two splendid 
horses himself, namely: Earl Wilkes, who has a record of 2.19 1-4, 
and Clyde Wilkes, with a mark of 2.21 1-4. 

On December 28, 1887, John Reil married Julia McGraw, daughter 
of William and Anna (O'Neill) McGraw, and they have a family of 
four children, namely: Mary, Clyde, Anna and Alice. 



Eber Richards. — The subject of this biography was born in Essex 
County, N. Y., May 6, 1836, and was educated in the public schools 
of his native place and at Norwich University. After completing his 
education he turned his attention to business affairs, and throughout 
his entire career has been eminently successful. 

It is the successful business men who are the strength and stays of 
this great commercial nation. To them the country owes more than 
to its politicians, philosophers or architects. What has the man who 
sits in the senate, or he who builds a bridge, or plans a temple, done 
for his kind, compared to the man who has founded a permanent 
industry, giving employment and sustenance to scores of men and 
their families. In the great cabinet of men the industrial leader is 
the chief, and his history, and the record of his work and successes, 
are more important than the kaleidoscopic and unprofitable careers of 
politicians and princes. 

Mr. Richards' first commercial enterprise was a lumber business, 
which he conducted successfully until in 1880 he embarked in the 
manufacture of paper. In 1892 he sold out his paper interests and 
began the manufacture of pulp, which he still continues. In this 
enterprise his son, Frederick B. Richards, is associated with him, the 
firm name being E. Richards & Son, and their plant is located at 
Ticonderoga, N. Y. 

In September. 1857, Mr. Richards married Mary E., daughter of 
James and Caziah (Lee) Culver. They have two sons, namely: Fred- 
erick B. Richards and Orson C. Richards. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 155 

Mr. Richards is a prominent Mason, a member of Sandy Hill Lodge 
No. 372, Sandy Hill Chapter No. 189, and Washington Commandery 
No. 5^, K. T., Saratoga Springs. He is also a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal Church, the Royal Arcanum, the Irocosia Club and the 
Society of the Mayflower. 

An active business career like that of Mr. Richards' almost pre- 
cludes the opportunity to take an active part in public affairs, yet Mr. 
Richards always took a deep interest in educational matters, and was 
a member of the Board of Education for the long period of thirty 
years, and held the office of Town Supervisor for one year. 

The fact of his being a member of the Mayflower Society indicates 
his lineage, and that his family is one of the oldest in America, his 
ancestors in this country having landed with the Pilgrims on Plymouth 
Rock. His parents were Orson and Julia A. (Fisk) Richards. 



Horace Rhodes was born in Granville, Washington County, N.Y., 
April 22, 1835. He was a son of William and Byer (Derby) Rhodes. 

He was educated in the district schools and at the North Granville 
Academy. After leaving school he engaged in the pursuit of farming,, 
which has been his business all his life. 

Horace Rhodes married Emeline Smith, daughter of William Smith,. 
and they have two children, namely: Hattie and Carrie M. Rhodes. 

Mr. Rhodes has never sought prominence in public life, yet he has- 
filled the office of Assessor for seventeen years, which is one of the 
most difficult public positions, because an assessor has to deal directly 
with the entire public in the valuation of their property. Owing, 
however, to Mr. Rhodes' good judgment and intimate knowledge of 
the value of real estate in his town, he has been a most satisfactory 
official, as his long term of office attests. 

He is also a member of the local Masonic Lodge. 

Mr. Rhodes' father was a soldier in the War of the Rebellion, and 
his grandfather was a patriot soldier in the Revolutionary War. 



156 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

John S. Rogers, one of the oldest and one of the best known and 
highly respected citizens of Whitehall, was born at Mount Holl)', Rut- 
land Count}", Vt., September 4, 1817. He received a liberal public 
school education in his native town and in Washington County, to 
which he removed in 1827. He was a farmer's son, and has been 
engaged in agricultural pursuits all his life. 

On January r, 1840, Mr. Rogers married Aravilla, daughter of Isaac 
and Abigail (Barber) Harlow. They have one daughter living, Julia, 
the wife of Allen E. Kelley. Another daughter, Sarah J., was born 
in October, 1846, and died August 11, 1850. 

On the first of January, 1840, sixty years ago this century year, Mr. 
and Mrs. Rogers were married, and now for more than a decade past 
the date of their golden wedding, they have lived together in harmony 
and felicity. Together, in harmony, they have shared life's joys and 
sorrows ; its bright and darkened days ; together climbing and aiding 
each other, up the hill of life, toward a golden sunset. Mrs. Rogers 
died November 8, 1900. 

Mr. Rogers' parents were Stephen and Anna (Emerson) Rogers. 
He had seven brothers and one sister. His father was born in Dan- 
bury, Rutland County, Vt., and his mother was born in Henicker, N. 
H., and died in 1841, aged fifty-six years. 

Mr. Rogers is a Republican in politics, and has been identified with 
that party since its organization in 1855. He cast his first vote for 
William Henry Harrison in 1840, and his latest for William McKinley 
in 1900. He enjoys not only the respect and esteem of the men of his 
own party, but of the public in general, and has been Justice of the 
Peace for the last ten years. He is also Truant Officer for the town 
of Whitehall. 

Although at the time of writing this article Mr. Rogers has passed 
his eighty-third birthday, he is still as active as most men are at fifty, 
and age has not impaired, but has ripened his mind. 

Mr. Rogers has two grandchildren, namely: John R. Kelle}" and 
Mary (Kelley) Jones, of Granville, N. Y. Mr. Rogers also has two 
great grandchildren, the children of his granddaughter, Mary (Kelley) 
Jones. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 157 

George E. Rogers was born in the villag-e of West Sand Lake, 
Rensselaer County, N. Y., and was educated in the public schools of 
his native place and at the Fort Edward Institute. After leaving 
'school he taught in different towns and villages for five years, and 
then became bookkeeper in a music store in Troy, which position he 
occupied for two years, after which he became traveling salesman for 
F. H. Cluett, remaining with him two years. He next removed to 
Fort Ann, and engaged in the iron ore business with J. F. Harris for 
two and a half years. 

In February, 1882, Mr. Rogers settled in Fort Edward and em- 
barked in the furniture and piano and organ business, which he con- 
tinued until 1894, when the firm of Rogers & Griffin, undertakers, 
was formed April i. 1900, since dissolved, and Mr. Rogers is now 
doing business alone at his new stand. 

Mr. Rogers is a prominent member of Blue Lodge, No. 261, F. & 
A. M., and has been its treasurer for a number of years, and of Chap- 
ter No. 191, R. A. M.. in which he has held the office of Scribe. He 
has also been a trustee of the Baptist church for a number of 3'ears. 

George E. Rogers married Delia M. Harris and they have three 
children, namely: J. Frank, Marian E. and W. Arthur Rogers. 

j\Ir. Rogers' parents were William and Maria A. (Hulsapple) 
Rogers, and is of English descent on his father's side. 



Frank C. Rvon, local agent for the Delaware & Hudson Company's 
coal department in Whitehall, is a son of Joseph and Mary A. Ryon, 
and was born in the Province of Quebec, Dominion of Canada, but 
was brought to the United States when an infant, by his parents, who 
settled in Burlington, Vermont. Here he received his early educa- 
tion and subsequently spent most of his time on the lakes up to the 
breaking out of the Civil War, during which he was master of a trans- 
port for the Union. In 1877 he removed to. Whitehall and received 
the appointment of agent for the Delaware & Hudson Company's 
coal department and has filled this position ever since. 

Since coming to Whitehall Mr. Ryon has taken an interest in public 
affairs and is one of the representative men of the village. He has 
held the office of Town Assessor for five years, which is one of the 
most difficult public positions, because the official has to come in 



158 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

touch with every citizen and be absolutely fair to all, yet such has 
been the good judgment possessed by Mr. Ryon, coupled together 
with an accurate knowledge of property values, that year after year 
he has continued to hold the position and discharge his duties with 
the highest degree of satisfaction. 

He is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity and afifiliated 
with Phrenix Lodge, No. 96, F. & A. M., and Champlain Chapter No. 
25, of Whitehall, and is a thorough business man, public spirited and 
popular, and enjoys the confidence of the public because of his honor- 
able business inethods and enterprise. 

In November, 1865, Mr. Ryon married Mary A., daughter of John 
and Almira (Luther) Aikens. They have four children, namely: 
Lillian A., Rose, Ellen and Edward F, 



Timothy F. Stoughton was born at Fort Edward, Washington 
County, N. Y., and was educated at the Fort Edward Union High 
School, after which he took up the drug business, in which he 
has since been continuously engaged. He received his diploma as a 
licensed pharmacist on October 17, 1884, and this was the 236th dip- 
loma granted under the new law requiring druggists to pass a rigid 
examination before being allowed to take charge of a prescription 
department. He continued in the capacity of a drug clerk until May, 
1898, when he entered into partnership with R. C. Montgomery, in 
their fine drug store at Fort Edward. This firm continued until 1901. 
when Mr. Stoughton sold out, but still remains in the store. 

Mr. Stoughton is a prominent Mason, being a member of Fort Ed- 
ward Lodge No. 267, F. & A. M., and Fort Edward Chapter No. 271. 
He is also a member of the Satterlee Hose Company, and a charter 
member of the Royal Arcanum. 

In 1879 Timothy F. Stoughton married Martha Roblee, and they 
have two children, namely: Lena Amelia and Montgomery Jones 
Stoughton. 

Mr. Stoughton's parents were Halsey W. and Elonsia Stoughton. 
His grandfather was Timothy Stoughton, who married Sophia Ingalls, 
and was a soldier in the War of 181 2. His great grandfather was 
John Stoughton, who was a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and 
was commissioned as Lieutenant, May 23, 1776. He was also a Jus- 



BIOGRAPHICAL 159 

tice of the Peace in Lenox, Berkshire County, Mass., for seven years. 
He married Ann Lewis. 

From this record it will be seen ihat the Stoug-hton family is not 
only an old American one. but that it also has been a prominent and 
patriotic family, and that its history is interwoven with that of the 
nation in at least two of the great historical periods of the United 
States. 

Timothy F. Stoughton is an enterprising and honorable business 
man, who has achieved success in his business through his unaided 
efforts and ability. 



Albert J. Stevenson was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., September 24, 1852, and was educated at the Argyle 
Academy, from which he was graduated in 1868. He then worked on 
the farm with his father until his marriage. On January 5, 1875, ^^ 
married Evelyn FuUerton, of Argyle, and they have a family of four 
children, namely: William E., Frank F., Grace E., and J. Howard. 
Mr. Stevenson's parents were James and Margaret (Gifford) Steven- 
son. His grandfather, John Stevenson, was one of the early settlers 
of the town of Argyle. 



William L. Sprague was born in the town of Greenwich, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., June 14, 185 1. He was reared on the farm and 
followed that occupation until 1888, when he embarked in the meat 
business, in which he has since been engaged, and in which he deals 
both at wholesale and retail. 

On January 3, 1875, William L. Sprague married Jennie M. Rathbun, 
daughter of Hiram C. and Mary (Hallum) Rathbtm, and they have 
one daughter, Anna M. Rathbun. 

Mr. Sprague's parents were William and Anna (Carpenter) vSprague, 
who were natives of Rhode Island. 

Mr. Sprague is a representative citizen of Greenwich, and is a mem- 
ber of the Odd Fellows Lodge No. 253, Union Village, and is also a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



160 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Lewis G. Snell, son of John S. and Esther A. (Gardner) Snell, was 
born in the town of Easton, Washington County, N. Y. , March 23, 
1857. Like most of the boys of his town, he was educated in the dis- 
trict schools and at Marshall Seminary, and after receiving a liberal 
education took up the occupation of farming, which he has since 
pursued. 

On April 4, 1881, Lewis G. Snell married Hattie P., daughter of 
Ezra and Betsey Harrington, and they have one son, Lewis P., born 
November 15, 1891. 

Mr. Snell is a representative and highly popular citizen of the town 
of Easton, and takes a deep and intelligent interest in all matters 
relating to the welfare of his town or county. 

He is a Democrat in politics and was a member of the Board of 
Supervisors for two years. 



Gilbert H. Stevens was born at Shushan February i, 1837, and 
was educated in the schools of his native village and at Washington 
Academy. After completing his education he accepted a position as 
teacher in West Arlington, Vermont, where he remained one term, 
after which he taught a year in Belcher, N. Y., and then along with 
his cousin, M. P. Stevens, purchased both the saw mills at Shushan. 
About the same time he built the house now owned by the Law 
estate. In 1862 Mr. Stevens was appointed station agent of the R. & 
W. Railway at Shushan, the road then being owned by Jay Gould. 
This position he filled with ability for the long term of twenty years. 
In 1883 he and Warren Kenyon built the old opera house at Shushan 
which was burned down in 1887. Immediately after the fire Mr. 
Stevens purchased the interest of Mr. Kenyon and built the New 
Stevens Opera House which was opened October 18, 1888. In the 
same year he inaugurated his general produce business in the Stevens 
building which he has since successfully continued. 

In 1895, after the death of his father, Mr. Stevens built the hand- 
some property known as the Park View Hotel, which is one of the 
best equipped and most popular hotels in Northern New York and 
which he personally conducts with eminent success. 

In politics Mr. Stevens is a staunch Republican and was the candi- 
date of his party for Supervisor of the town in 1882. In 1888 he was 



BIOGRAPHICAL 161 

made postmaster at Shushan under President Harrison. He has 
always been prominent in politics and is the leader of his district, in 
which he is highly popular. 

In July, 1859, Mr. Stevens married Elbertine Z. Jones, daughter of 
Benjamin and Almira (Morehouse) Jones, formerly of Clintonville, N. 
Y. They have two children, namely: Frances E., born in i860, who is 
a graduate of the Boston Conservatory of Music in the class of 1879 and 
Alice V, born in 1875, who is a graduate of Wellesley College, class 
of 1898, who immediately received a position as one of the superin- 
tendents of the public library in Boston, which position she now 
holds. The former resides at Saranac Lake and the latter in Boston. 

Mr. Stevens' parents were Franklin and Harriet (Fowler) Stevens, 
His paternal grandmother was a Howe and a direct descendant of 
Lord Howe of Revolutionary fame. 

Franklin Stevens was a prominent man of his day. He was a 
director of the R. & W. Railway, also of the Peoples' Bank of Salem, 
and at one time Director of the First National Bank of Salem, also of 
the Cambridge Vallev Bank at his demise. 



Charles H. Safford was born in the town of Greenwich, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., April i, 1851. He received an academical educa- 
tion, and after his school days took up the occupation of farming with 
his uncle. He subsequently engaged in selling pumps and continued 
in this business for about three years, when he branched off and went 
into the sale of ornamental iron work for fences and other decorations. 
He was engaged in this business for six years, and in 1897 he em- 
barked in the granite and marble business, and also deals largely in 
wire fences, and in this line, as well as in the marble and granite 
business, is at all times prepared to fill orders of any magnitude. He 
makes a specialty of Southern Falls and Rutland marble and Quincy 
granite. 

On December 31, 1879, Charles H. Safford married Elizabeth 
Durfee, daughter of Abram and Louisa (Burch) Durfee. They have 
three children, Jessie M., born June 22, 1881, who is now a teacher; 
Louisa A., born November i, 1882, and Emily J., born December 14, 



162 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

1889. Mr. Safford's parents were Jacob, of Greenwich, N. Y., and 
Jane (Brag-g) Safford, who was a native of Rensselaer County, N. Y. 

The ancestors of the Safford family in America were of English 
origin. Mr. Safford's grandfather on his mother's side, George Bragg, 
came from Manchester, England, and settled in Rensselaer Countv, 
N. Y. 



DeWitt Clinton Smith. — The subject of this sketch, who is one 
of the best known and ablest financiers of northeastern New York, 
was born in the town of Granville, Washington County, N. Y., July 
20, 1837. His father was a physician, and he received such education 
as the district schools of his day afforded, and worked on his father's 
farm until he attained his majority. He took up the study of medi- 
cine and pursued it for some time, but finally abandoned it and came 
to Whitehall in 1867. He accepted employment in the Canal Col- 
lector's ofhce, and remained in this office for four years, when he 
entered the Old National Bank as Teller. He remained in this posi- 
tion for two years, and in 1873 became Teller of the First National 
Bank of Whitehall, where he remained for eight years, or until that 
bank went out of existence in 1882. He entered the Merchants Na- 
tional Bank as Teller, and in 18S9 was elected Cashier, which position 
he still occupies. For almost thirty years Mr. Smith has been actively 
engaged in the banking business, and has become a strong and promi- 
nent factor in the financial affairs of Washington County. 

It may be said that in every way Mr. Smith is one of Whitehall's 
most active and prominent citizens. He has been an active fireman 
for twenty-five years, was foreman of Whitehall Steamer Company for 
six years, and Chief Engineer for three years. He was Clerk of the 
village for eleven years, and has been Secretary of the School Board 
for the past twelve years. He is also a prom.inent Mason and is a 
member of Granville Lodge No. 55, F. & A. M., which is one of the 
oldest Lodges in the county, its charter being dated 1790; of Cham- 
plain Chapter No. 25, and Washington Commandery No. ^;i, Saratoga 
Springs. He is also a thirty-second degree Scottish Rite Mason. 

Mr. Smith's parents were Dr. Horace and Rachel (Dean) vSmith, 
and he was the youngest of a family of twelve children. 

Dr. Horace Smith was born in. Weathersfield, Vt., February 22, 
1786, and on November i, 1S12, he married Rachel Dean, who was 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 163 

also a native of Weathersfield. and was born Jvily 5, 1792. Dr. Hor- 
ace Smith died May 25, 1863, and his wife, November 27, 1867. 

While taking a y/arm interest in all public affairs, and especially in 
educational matters, Mr. Smith has never aspired to public office, but 
his connection with the social, financial and commercial interests — 
vital interests of every day life — has made him prominent in the ranks 
of those whose services are more valuable to their day and generation 
than those of any politician. 



Michael Sonn. — The subject of this biography, who is today one 
of the leading business men of Washington County, was born in Ger- 
many, January 13, 1851. He was educated in his native land, and 
early in life became associated with the business of cattle speculator, 
in which his father was engaged. He received a thorough training 
in this line as well as in business generally, to which his whole life 
has been devoted. He came to America in 1872 and for one year was 
assistant shipping clerk for the Chichester Chair Company. In May, 
1873, he came to Greenwich, and began business in a modest way, 
peddling with a pack for some time and then with a team for a suc- 
ceeding period. In 1879 he opened a store in Greenwich, which has 
proved a great success under his able management, so that toda}^ he 
is regarded as a leading business man of the place. To this distinc- 
tion he is entitled because of the volume and extent of his trade, and 
also because of his fair dealing, integrity and honesty. 

Mr. Sonn's store building, known as the Sonn block, is a three-story 
and basement structure So feet by 25 feet, and is specially adapted to 
the requirements of his business, and is one of the best, if not the- 
best business block in Greenwich. He also owns a business and busi- 
ness block in Schuylerville. He carries at all times a large and care- 
fully selected stock of goods embracing clothing, boots and shoes, 
haberdashery and gent's furnishings, adapted to the requirements of 
his varied trade. The basement is devoted to the boot and shoe busi- 
ness. The entire establishment is fitted up in the most modern style 
and thoroughly equipped for the expeditious transaction of business, 
including Lamson cash carriers and a long distance 'phone in both 
houses. Mr. Sonn gives the entire business his personal supervision 
to both houses, and to this, along with his fine business ability and 
good judgment, the success of these establishments is entirely due. 



164 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Bonn is prominent socially as well as in a business way and is 
public spirited to a high degree. He is a member of Ashlar Lodge, 
No. 584, F. & A. M., Home Chapter R. A. M., Schuylerville, and 
Chapter O. E. S., Eastern Star Degree. He is also a meinber of the 
Odd Fellows. He is also a director of the Electric Light Company 
and of the Water Works and was one of the founders of both. He is 
also an honorary member of the Fire Department, with which he has 
been connected since 1876. 

In 1876 Mr. Sonn married Adelheide Rosenberg, and they have a 
family of three children, namely: Isadore, Jennie A. and Elsie. His 
parents were Israel and Miriam Sonn. His father was one of the 
prominent cattle speculators of Germany, and a successful and popular 
gentleman. 



Joseph T. Safford was born in the town of Salem, Washington 
County, N. Y., May 8, i860, and was educated at the Greenwich 
Academy, Greenwich, N. Y. He started life as a clerk in the general 
merchandise store of H. Lawson at Middle Falls, N. Y. From this 
place he went to New York City and took a position in a wholesale 
produce store, where he remained for four years. He then went to 
Elberon, N. J., where he was employed as night clerk in a hotel, 
which position he held for three summers, and his experience here 
gave him a start and a thorough knowledge of hotel business. He 
then went to New York City and took the position of receiving clerk 
of Hotel Brunswick, where he remained for about four years, when 
he went to the Stewart House, corner 41st Street and Broadway, and 
assisted in the opening of that house. In 1898 he came to West 
Hebron and opened the hotel which he is still conducting there. 

Mr. Safford is a member of the Sons of Veterans, Excelsior Camp, 
No. 51, of New York City, his father having been a soldier in the 
War of the Rebellion. 

Mr. Safford's parents were Nathaniel and Rachael (Vandenburgh) 
Safford. 

Nathaniel Safford enlisted in the 77th Regiment, New York State 
Volunteers, and served almost three years, being in the service at the 
close of the war. He was a member of the Cook Post, G. A. R., of 
Greenwich, N. Y. He died December 15, 1891. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 165 

C. Edward Smith is not only a man of the advanced sort, but is 
liberal in his views, and believes that nothing is too good for the 
people of Cambridge, in which village he has resided for more than a 
third of a century. He was born in Penn Yan, N. Y., November ii, 
1853. His father moved to Cambridge, in 1867, and C. Edward 
Smith received his education in the district schools and in the Cam- 
bridge Washington Academy. 

At the age of fifteen years he began a clerkshi'p in the dry goods 
house of Hawkins & Porter, and at the age of seventeen he became 
clerk for M. P. Barton in the furniture business, with whom he 
remained for about two years. In 1873 he entered upon what was 
destined to be his life work, namely, the seed business. In that 
year he entered the employment of Mr. Jerome B. Rice as book- 
keeper and occasional traveling salesman. These two positions he 
filled with such com.plete satisfaction that in the fall of 1879 Mr. Rice 
made him Superintendent. In 1886 he became a stockholder in the 
said business, and Secretary of the Board of Directors, of which he 
was a member. 

The directors at that time were Jerome B. Rice, Niles Rice, James 
Henry Rice, O. K. Rice and C. Edward Smith. In 1895, at a meet- 
ing of the Board of Directors, he was unanimously elected Vice-Presi- 
dent and Treasurer, still continuing a director, and in this capacity he 
has since continued. 

On August 14, 1878, C. Edward Smith married M. Alma vShortt, 
daughter of Rev. "W. B. Shortt of Cambridge. They have two chil- 
dren, namely: Paul S. and Alice P. Paul Smith is a student in his 
third year at Harvard College, and is taking a classical and scien- 
tific course. 

In 1883 Mr. Smith built a beautiful residence on South Union street, 
Cambridge, N. Y. The exterior is quite attractive, and the interior 
much more so. 

Mr. Smith's father was Edward Smith, a native of Hebron, N. Y. 
His mother was Delcina (Hope) Smith, a native of Oswego, Oswego 
County, N. Y. His grandfather was Charles E. Smith, a native of 
Hebron, and his paternal grandfather and grandmother were Allen 
and Emeline (Baker) Hope of Oswego Count}^ N. Y. 



166 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

George H. Sanders was born in the town of Fort Edward, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., November 19, 1844. His parents were George 
M. and Betsey (Bristol) Sanders. After receiving a common school 
education he took up boating on the canal, which he followed until 
1882, when he embarked in the enterprise of boat-building at Moses 
Kill, Washington County, N. Y., in which he is still engaged, and in 
which he employs eight to twelve men, the year round. 

Mr. Sanders is a Republican in politics, and has always taken an 
active part in aid of his party, but has never aspired to office himself, 
always declining proffers in that direction. 

George H. Sanders married Sapronia Belden, daughter of Calvin 
and Belinda Belden. 

Mr. Sanders' ancestors on his father's side were Dutch, and on his 
mother's side French. 



Henry Spallholz is the son of Heinrich and Wilhelmine (Schlo- 
derer) Spallholz, and was born in Heidenheim, Wurtemberg, March 
8, 1859, and was educated in the schools of his native place, and grad- 
uated from the Heidenheimer Gymnasium in 1874. He followed 
mercantile and manufacturing pursuits in Germany until 1882, when 
he came to America and accepted a position in the shirt factory of M. 
Price in New York City, where he remained four years. He was then 
promoted to the position of manager of the branch factory belonging 
to the Price firm at Granville, Washington County, where he remained 
one and one-half years. In June, 1888, he came to Salem, N. Y., and 
bought a shirt factory, which he conducted himself until 1891, in 
which year he became Superintendent of the Salem Shirt and Sewing 
Company, which was formed at that time. Subsequently the above 
firm sold its interest to the Manhattan Shirt Compay of Paterson, N. 
J., and Mr. Spallholz retained his management of the Salem factory 
under the new firm. 

In 1880 Mr. Spallholz was united in marriage to Johanna Lind, of 
Stuttgart. They have one son, Henry A., who was born Septem- 
ber 5, 1881. 

In the fall of 1889 the Manhattan Shirt Company moved their shops 
into the handsome stone and brick building, especially built for their 
purpose, and constructed south of the former factory. The main 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 167 

structure is three stories high, one hundred feet long and thirty-five 
feet wide. To the west of this is a two story L. 22x60 feet; also a 
20x22 power house, for the accommodation of two large engines and 
two dynamos, electricity being employed for running all the ma- 
chinery, as well as for lighting the entire plant. The business fur- 
nishes employment to 300 operatives, and the weekly output is about 
1600 dozen shirts. The weekly payroll amounts to about i$2,ooo. 



Martin H. Stevens was born in the year 1857 in Shushan, N. Y., 
and is the oldest son of Martin P. and Elsie (Valentine) Stevens. 

At the early age of thirteen he went into the produce business with 
his father under the firm name of Martin P. Stevens & Son. This firm 
continued until his father's death, which occurred in 1890. Martin 
P. Stevens was one of the pioneer potato buyers in this part of New 
York State. Since his death the business has been conducted under 
the name of Martin H. Steven & Co., with offices at Shushan and at 
Nos. 8-9 Manhattan Market, New York City. At this one point, their 
yearly sales exceed $200,000, which is not more than one-third of the 
total sales of shipments made to eastern, southern and other large 
cities. 

Mr. Stevens has been in the commission business all his life, and 
his wide experience, together with his unremitting energy and fine 
business abilities, has made him the largest potato merchant purchas- 
ing from the farms in the country. Their shipments in 1899 exceeded 
800 carloads of potatoes. They buy not only at Shushan, but at var- 
ious points, and bill direct to New York Cit}'. 

Since 1899 Mr. Stevens has represented the German- American In- 
surance Company, Hartford, and other life and fire insurance com- 
panies, and has for several years done an extensive real estate busi- 
ness, being a large buyer and seller of real estate in this part of the 
country. 

In politics Mr. Stevens is a Republican, and although not a church 
member, he has been prominent in church matters and was a large 
contributor to both the new Methodist and Baptist churches, and was 
on the building committee of both edifices. 

In June, 1897, Martin H. Stevens married Katie Proulix of Rupert, 
Vermont. 



168 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

John Sullivan was born in Whitehall, Washington County, N. Y., 
January 15, 1850. His parents were Daniel and Johanna (Sweeney) 
Sullivan. He is the youngest of six children. His father came to 
the United States from Ireland in 1840 and settled in Whitehall, N. 
Y. Mr. Sullivan was educated in the public schools of his native 
town and after his school days began the active business of life as a 
clerk in the employ of Ferdinand Warren, in a grocery store where 
he remained five years. He next worked for James Wood for a period 
of three years after which he was with Ambrose Gilleghan for thirteen 
years, after which he was with John Brett four years. In 1887 he 
established himself in business on his own account, opening a grocery 
store and bakery. In this he has been very successful and his busi- 
ness now requires the employment of four clerks and two delivery 
wagons, and is located in a substantial three story brick building 
90x35 feet in dimensions. 

On November 27, 1873, Mr. Sullivan married Teresa, daughter of 
Patrick and Teresa Castle. 

Mr. Sullivan takes an active interest in the public affairs of White- 
hall. In politics Mr. Sullivan is a Democrat. He has held the office 
of Village Trustee two years, was Village Treasurer two years and 
Town Collector one year. He is a member of the Knights of Colum- 
biis and of the Catholic Union. 



Douglass Steele was born in the town of Dresden, Washington 
County, N. Y., June 13, 1862. He is a son of Robert W. and Mary 
(Lewis) Steele. He was educated in the district schools and is inter- 
ested both in farming and mercantile business, conducting a general 
store at Dresden. 

He takes an active part in public affairs, and is postmaster at Dres- 
den, to which office he was appointed under President McKinley. He 
is also a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F. 

On November 14, 1897, Douglass Steele married Catherine Sleight, 
daughter of David and Jane (Stewart) Sleight, and they have one son, 
Gerald A. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 169 

Oringe Shaw was born in Saratoga County, N.Y., August 12, 1849, 
and was educated in the district schools of his native county. His 
first business experience was in a saw mill, whei^e he worked for sev- 
enteen years, after which he was connected with the Glens Falls Paper 
Mill Company, where he began as millwright, and subsequently had 
charge of the repair department for two and one-half years. He then 
became connected with the Glens Falls Pulp Company in the same 
capacity, and in January of 1891 came to Sandy Hill, and put in the 
machinery in the upper mill of the Union Bag and Paper Company. 
He has been with this company since 1891. and when the paper plant 
was established he became an Assistant Superintendent, which posi- 
tion he held until 1899, when he became Superintendent, and now 
occupies that position. 

Mr. Shaw is a member of Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M. ; 
Sandy Hill Chapter No. 189, R. A. M. ; Washington Commandery No. 
^^, K.T., at Saratoga Springs; Oriental Temple, of Troy; Crown Star 
Chapter No. 143, Eastern Star, and is at present Worthy Patron of 
Eastern Star. He has held all the chairs in the Blue Lodge, has been 
Scribe of the Chapter, and is at present King of the Chapter. On his 
fiftieth birthday Mr. Shaw was the recipient from the Masons of 
Sandy Hill of an elegant gold watch and chain. He is also a member 
of Sandy Hill Council No. 587, Royal Arcanum. In politics Mr. Shaw 
is a Republican, and a staunch supporter of his party, but does not 
take any active part in public affairs, although he was elected Trustee 
of the village of Sandy Hill, in March, 1900. 

On October 14, 1873, Oringe Shaw married Mary E. Haviland, 
daughter of Ransford B. and Frances M. (Colvin) Haviland, and they 
have a family of three children, namely: Frances Marion, now Mrs. 
Fred Gardophe, of Sandy Hill; Beecher S., who is a clerk in the office 
of his father, and Helen M., who is now Mrs. Henry Trimble. 

Mr. Shaw has been, in the truest sense of the term, the architect of 
his own fortune, and has been a very successful man. He started 
out for himself at thirteen years of age, and has worked himself up 
from the position of a humble mechanic to that of Superintendent 
in one of the largest manufacturing concerns in the United States. 
He is a man of fine business abilities, honest and honorable, and has a 
high standing in the community where he resides. 

[V] 



170 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Marcellus S. Smith is a son of Jason and Betsey (Robinson) 
Smith, and was born in the town of Jay, Essex County, N. Y., Decem- 
ber 2, 1819. His parents removed to Redding, Vermont, when he 
was a child and there he was educated in the public schools. In 1840 
he came to Whitehall and entered upon an apprenticeship at stone 
and brick work. In 1841 he embarked in businesss on his own account 
which he continued for one year when he went into the grocery busi- 
ness in partnership with his brother, Ormand E. Smith under the 
firm name of O. E. & M. S. Smith. This partnership continued for 
five years, when Mr. Smith went into the contracting and building 
business, in which he continued for a number of years. 

In May, 1846, Mr. Smith married Adeline, daughter of Hugh and 
June McCulter. Their children are Herbert D., now of Brooklyn, 
N. Y., Florence F.. Helen C. and Eugene D., the latter of Brooklyn, 
and Jennie M., wife of George Aucurt of Ballston Spa. 

Mrs. Smith died in February, 1892. 

Mr. Smith is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., 
Washington Encampment No. 69, I. O. O. F., and is an honorary 
member of the Canton. He has been a member of the Odd Fellows 
since 1844, and is now one of the oldest living members of the order 
in the United States. 



Frank Albert Sisson was born in the town of White Creek, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., February 18, 1861. He was educated in the 
public schools, and at the age of eighteen years went to work for his 
father, Dyer P. Sisson, in the large general merchandise store in 
White Creek village. In 1888 he and J. Frank Bennett purchased 
this business, and have since conducted it under the name and style 
of Bennett & Sisson. They deal largely in country produce and sup- 
ply many stores in the near-by villages and cities with fresh farm 
products, especially eggs and butter, and their trade extends over a 
large area. It is not inappropriate to make the statement here that 
there is no better butter than White Creek butter in the world. 

Mr. Sisson's mother's maiden name was Hannah A. Barker. She 
was a member of an influential and worthy White Creek family. 
His grandfather was a soldier in the War of 181 2. 

Frank A. Sisson married Chloe D. Bennett, daughter of Romaine 
Bennett, of White Creek. They have a family of three children, 
namely: Rose H., Chloe M. and Myra E. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 171 

David Sleight was born in England, Noveinber 14, 1839. His 
parents were David and Catherine (Woodcock) Sleight. He received 
his education in England, and came to America when a young man, 
and has always followed the occupation of farming in this country. 
He is a representative farmer of the town of Dresden, and has held 
the offices of Commissioner and Assessor. 

On April 26, 1862, David Sleight married Jane Stewart, and they 
have a family of nine children, namely: Kate, David E., James S., 
Susan A., William R., G. Alexander, Belle J., Grace M. and Andrew. 
Mr. Sleight and his family are Presbyterians. 



Alphonzo D. Smalley. — Every flourishing community owes its 
prosperity to the enterprise of its business men. Sandy Hill, which 
has a wide reputation as a smart business place, is no exception to the 
rule, and one of the men who contribute in a large degree to its com- 
mercial activity is Mr. Alphonzo D. Smalley. 

Mr. Smalley was born in the town of Johnsonville, Rensselaer 
County, N. Y., November 16, 1861. He was educated in the city of 
Troy, and began his business career as a clerk for C. H. Shacklady, 
druggist, of Troy, which position he held for six years. He came to 
Sandy Hill in the year 1883, to take a position as clerk in the store of J. 
McFarland, and remained with him for four years. In 1887 he joined 
with R. M. Cole, succeding his former employer, and bought a drug 
business, which they conducted successfully for nineteen months, 
under the firm name of Smalley & Cole, which firm was succeeded 
by A. D. Smalley & Company, Mr. Cole retiring, and was so con- 
tinued for five years, when Mr. Smalley became sole proprietor, and 
has since conducted the business alone. 

In October, 1883, Mr. Smalley married Lottie B. Harvey, daughter 
of Bradford C. and Julia A. (Cooke) Harvey. They have two chil- 
dren, Madge J. and Charlotte I. 

Mr. Smalley's parents were Isaiah R. and Sarah A. (Millard) 
Smalley. 

Mr. Smalley is a prominent Mason, and is a member of Sandy Hill 
Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M. ; Sandy Hill Chapter No. 189; Washing- 
ton Commandery No. ;i;i, of Saratoga Springs, and Oriental Temple 
of the Mystic Shrine, at Troy. 



172 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In May, 1896, Mr. Smalley purchased the building he now occupies, 
three stories and cellar, 99x25, and utilizes the entire building, which 
he rebuilt in 1898. This is one of the best brick structures in the 
village. 



Albert G. Taylor. — The subject of this sketch was born in 
Argyle in 1847, and received his education in the common schools and 
the Argyle Academy, an institution long and favorably known as a 
thorough and efficient preparatory school. 

In 1863 Mr. Taylor began work for himself at the age of sixteen, 
in which year he received the appointment of Deputy Postmaster at 
Fort Fdward, N. Y. In 1864 he accepted a position in the Farmers' 
Bank, Fort Edward, arid remained there until 1871, when he wxnt to 
the North Granville Bank where he was engaged for a year. The 
said bank of Fort Edward then offered him a situation as teller, which 
he accepted and filled until 1880, in which year he became cashier of 
the Cambridge Valley National Bank, succeeding James Thompson. 
M. D. Hubbard was at that time President of the bank. Mr. Taylor 
gives his entire attention to the banking business, in which he is 
regarded as an expert and has become a recognized authority on 
financial questions. He has refused requests to accept candidacy for 
public office, believing that banking should never be mixed in any 
way with the cares of office or political machinery. 

In 1868 Mr. Taylor married Fannie A. Potter of Fort Edward, a 
niece of Hon. Joseph Potter of Whitehall. They have one son, Harry 
S. Taylor. 

Four of Mr. Taylor's brothers were in the Civil War, John A., 
Theodore C, James W. , who were privates, and William H., who 
held the rank of Lieutenant. 

William H. died in 1896. He was for many years manager of the 
Loss Department of the Aetna Insurance Company of Chicago. 
Charles W. held the office of County Clerk for twelve consecutive 
years. The other brothers after the war returned to private life. 

Mrs. Taylor's ancestors were famous as Revolutionary patriots. 
The family is traced back to the earliest settlements in this country 
and then to England. Mrs. Taylor's father was Sandford Robertson 
Potter of Fort Edward, N. Y. He was Supervisor of that town for 



BIOGRAPHICAL 173 

years and was one of its leading merchants. He and John A. Gris- 
wold of Troy were proprietors of a large blasting furnace in Fort 
Edward. He retired from active business in 1890. His parents were 
Joel and Annie (Austin) Potter. Joel Potter was a descendant of 
Nathaniel Potter who came from England in 1677 and settled at 
Portsmouth, R. I. Another ancestor of Mrs. Taylor was the noted 
scout and Revolutionary soldier, Jacob Benson, known as " Banfoot " 
Benson. He was a native of Massachusetts. Another ancestor came 
from London in 1665. He was a son of Robert Wilson, who owned 
certain large estates in Warwickshire, England. 



J. B. Taylor. — The subject of this sketch has long been one of the 
active and representative men of the town of Fort Ann, which is his 
native place. He was born February 11, 1844, in the old Taylor 
homestead, the house in which he now resides, and received his edu- 
cation in the common schools at Fort Ann and at the Fort Edward 
Institute. 

He learned the trade of carpenter and builder as well that of 
carriage maker, and followed these pursuits for a number of years, 
but latterly turned his attention to farming, in which he is now 
engaged. 

It is in the days of peace that the best and most abiding history of 
a country is made and in this the carpenter and the farmer play the 
most decidedly important parts, for one produces and the other builds 
up. In both of these lines Mr. Taylor has been active and successful 
and has by his own ability made himself a valued citizen. He takes 
an intelligent interest in all public affairs and public improvements 
and has held the office of Highway Commissioner in his town. 

In 1875 Mr. Taylor married Lenora Cudney of Stony Creek. They 
have two daughters, Clara and Grace. Mr. Taylor's parents were 
Philander and Harriet (Barker) Taylor. Philander Taylor is still liv- 
ing at the age of 87 years. 

On August II, 1862, Mr. Taylor enlisted in a Washington County 
Regiment and served as private and sergeant until the close of the 
war, and was wounded at Atlanta, Ga. 



174 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Henry Thompson was born on the farm on which he now resides, 
in the town of Jackson, Washington County, N. Y., Jantiary lo, 1847. 
He was educated at the Cambridg-e Academy, and after leaving 
school embarked in the occupation of farming, which he has always 
followed. 

On June 11, 1889, Henry Thompson married Ella M. Blodgett, of 
Detroit, Michigan, and they have two children, namely: Henry W. 
and Eldred K. 

Mr. Thompson's parents were William and Ora (Buck) Thompson. 

Mr. Thompson is one of the representative farmers of Washington 
County, and has always taken an active interest in local affairs. He 
has been school trustee and is a stockholder in the Cambridge Na- 
tional Bank. 



Daniel Tinkey was born in South Argyle, Washington County, N. 
Y., June 26, 1832, and was educated at the old Argyle Academy, from 
which he was graduated in the year 1852. After completing his edu- 
cation he went to work on the farm with his father, where he 
remained until he was married, March 6, 1856. Mrs. Tinkey's maiden 
name was Nancy Jane Willett, and she was a native of North Argyle. 

Mr. Tinkey's parents were Stephen and Catharine (Bain) Tinkey. 

Henry Tinkey, grandfather of Daniel Tinkey, was a native of 
Washington County, and lived to be ninety-three years old. He died 
in 1840. 



William Connell Tripler, D. D. S., the leading dentist of Fort 
Edward, is a native of Philadelphia, and after receiving a thorough 
literary education, entered Towne Scientific School, of the University 
of Pennsylvania, afterward taking up the study of dentistry, and after 
a four years' course was graduated from that institution in April, 18S4. 
During two years of his college course he devoted a great deal of 
attention to sciences, and is a member of the Delta Phi Fraternity of 
his Alma Mater. 

Dr. Tripler began the practice of his profession in Norristown, 
Penn., where he remained five years. He then removed to Glens 
Falls, and finally settled in Fort Edward in 1894. 

Dr. Tripler is a member of Fort Edward Lodge No. 267, F. & A. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 175 

M. ; Fort Edward Chapter No. 171, R. A. M. ; Washington Council 
No. 261, Royal Arcanum, and George Satterlee Hose Company No. 2, 
of Fort Edward. 

In Augnst, 1S99, Dr. Tripier married Clara B. Lamarche. His 
parents were William Charles and Elizabeth L. Tripier. The Tripier 
family is an old American one. 

Dr. Tripler's grandfather, Jacob Tripier, was a resident of Penn- 
sylvania, and his people settled in that state prior to the Revolution- 
ary War, coming over with Pastorius, the celebrated German scien- 
tist. Dr. Tripler's father, William Charles Tripier, w^as a Union 
soldier in a Pennsylvania regiment in the War of the Rebellion. 



George Turner. — One of the best known and most highly 
respected citizens of Fort Edward was born at Waklon, England, 
October 27, 1825, and came to America in 1850. He settled first in 
Schenectady and resided there for about five and one-half years. 
There, in 185 1, he married Elizabeth M. Swart, a descendant of the 
Glens, after whom Glens Falls was named. They have a family of 
two children, namely: Captain Reuben B. and Georgetta. Captain 
Turner is captain of the Sixth Infantry, United States Regular Army; 
is a graduate of West Point, and participated in the Spanish War and 
was at Santiago when it surrendered, and is now acting as superin- 
tendent of Fort Spokane. He superintended the construction of Fort 
Thomas from commencement to finish. 

In 1855 Mr. Turner settled in Fort Edward where he has followed 
the occupation of merchant tailor for the past forty-five years. He 
commands the respect of his fellow townsmen and has held different 
public offices in the village of Fort Edward. He was Treasurer of 
the village for one 3'ear; was Police Justice of the village four years 
and of the town for two years. He has also been Justice of the Peace 
for seven years. 

Mr. Turner's parents were George and Amy Turner, both English. 
His mother was born and died in the same house, and the family have 
lived in that house for about five hundred years. Mr. Turner's 
daughter, Georgetta, married Frederick Cornell of Sandy Hill, and 
they have two sons, Henry Cornell and Glen M. Cornell. 



176 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Miss Frances A. Tefft was born in Sandy Hill, Washington 
County, N. Y., August i, 1845, and is the daughter of John H. and 
Dyantha (Winchip) Tefft. 

Miss Tefft educated herself for a teacher, and her first experience 
was in the Argyle Academy, where she began teaching in 1864, along 
with Mr. McLaren. She remained in that institution for three years, 
and in 1867 she and Mr. McLaren were associated in a private school 
at Sandy Hill. In the next year, 1868, Miss Tefft accepted the posi- 
tion of preceptress of the Union Schools of Sandy Hill, which position 
she held until 1876, when she and Mr. McLaren purchased the Glens 
Falls Academy, where she taught until 1887, when she returned to 
Sandy Hill, and again became principal of the Union vSchools. This 
position she has filled, up to the present time, and with most pro- 
nounced success. Indeed, through her entire career, her work has 
been characterized by such ability and success that she stands in the 
front rank of the teachers of the State. Sandy Hill is justly proud of 
its schools, and their efficiency is to be attributed, in a large degree, 
to the intelligent work of their principal. 

Miss Tefft's ancestors were of English descent, and settled in this 
country at a very early date. 



Edwin B. Temple, one of Washington County's most respected and 
honored citizens, was born in Granville, Washington County, N. Y., 
January 8, 1825. He had very few school advantages, and began 
working on his father's farm when a boy, attending the district school 
in the winter months. After leaving home he began farm life for 
himself in Hebron, which he continued for some time. In 1868 he 
returned to Granville, where he purchased a farm north of the village, 
and here continued the business of farming, and that of speculator in 
potatoes and wool, for many years. 

In politics Mr. Temple has always been a staunch Republican, and 
has been honored by his party on several occasions. He was Super- 
visor of the town of Granville for a term of six years, and has often 
been sent to County Conventions as a delegate. In 1899 he was 
elected County Treasurer, which office he has filled to the highest 
satisfaction of the residents of the county. 

Mr. Temple is a son of Roswell and Elizabeth (Case) Temple, both 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 177 

of whom were natives of Washington County. His grandfather, Ros- 
well Temple, was one of the pioneer settlers of Worcester, Mass. 

On the 3d day of September, 1852, Mr. Temple was united in mar- 
riage to Mary Woodard, daughter of Daniel and Anna (Case) Woodard. 
They have three children, namely: Orla M., married Angle Warren, 
in California; Charlotte, wife of James S. Potter, in Argyle, and 
Ralph, who married Grace Corning, of Granville. 

Socially, and in a business way, Mr. Temple is a man held in high 
esteem for his straightforward manner, his integrity and his acknowl- 
edged abilit3^ Indirection is to him unknown. Having confidence 
in others, he holds that all men have more good points than bad ones, 
and that the world was made to be cheerful in. He hates all preten- 
sions and shams that tend to raise one honest man above another in 
the estimation of the people. He has a strong personality, is pleasant 
of manner, and is deservedly popular, both as a citizen and as an 
official. 



Luther Roswell Temple was born in Granville, Washington 
County, N. Y., November 28, 1829. He is the third son of Roswell 
and Elizabeth (Case) Temple. What little early education he received 
was obtained in the district schools and the North Hebron Academy. 
When twenty-three years of age he began farming in South Gran- 
ville, so continuing for thirty-four years. In 1890 he came to Gran- 
ville and bought six acres of land in what is now the best part of the 
village located west of the Mettowee River. He opened up streets, 
and sold off village lots, and where the original six acres stood, there 
are now nineteen splendid residences owned by the occupants ; so that 
he has played a very important part in the building up of this thriv- 
ing village. 

Mr. Temple has led a very busy life and, although now practically 
retired, he still is interested in financial matters, having always been 
successful as an investor and interested in western loans. 

He has also taken an active part in public affairs, having held the 
position of Assessor for twelve years. He was formerly a Republican, 
although recently (for the past few years) he has voted with the Prohi- 
bitionists. He has been a director of the Farmers National Bank and 
is still a stockholder in that institution. In 1865 he became a member 

[w] 



178 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of the Baptist Church of North Hebron. While in Hebron he was 
Church Clerk for eighteen years and Superintendent of the Sunday 
School for some time. 

Mr. Temple has a beautiful residence on the corner of Quaker and 
Mettowee streets. This house is not only finely located, but is a 
model residence, exactly suited to his quiet unpretentious tastes. He 
still owns one farm in Granville, and is largely interested in real 
estate. 

On April 9, 1856, Mr. Temple married Delia M. Smith of Hebron, 
N. Y., daughter of Eli and Eunice Smith, and they have four child- 
ren, namely : William D. Temple, travelling salesman, Eli S. Temple, 
who died at the age of twenty-eight years, Mary C, wife of James C. 
Robinson of Nebraska, and Eunice L., wife of Henry L. Coy of Eas- 
ton, Washington County, N. Y. 

Mr. Temple is an unobtrusive and a self-made man. By strict 
attention to business, hard work and good judgment, he has accumu- 
lated wealth in an honorable way, and enjoys the highest respect and 
best wishes of the community in which he resides. 



Willis Ashton Tennev, M, D., was born at Morristown.Vt., April 
10, 1853, and is a son of Daniel W. and Henrietta (Powers) Tenney, 
both of whom were natives of New Hampshire. 

Willis Ashton Tenney was educated at the Peoples Academy, Mor- 
ristown, Vt., and at the Medical Department of the University of 
Vermont, in Burlington, from which he was graduated with the 
degree of M. D., in 1877. 

Early in life, and before taking his medical degree. Dr. Tenney 
developed a great interest in the cause of education, and began teach- 
ing school at the age of seventeen years, continuing in that profession 
until twenty-three years of age. He was principal of the graded 
school at Winooski, Vt. , and also principal of the Stowe High School, 
in Stowe, Vt., and of the Underbill, Vermont, Academy. He was only 
twenty years of age when he became principal of the Winooski school. 

He began the practice of medicine in Brattleboro, Vt. , as associate 
with Dr. Henry D. Holton, Professor of Materia Medica and Thera- 
peutics, in the Medical Department of the University of Vermont. 

In 1878 he settled in Granville, where he has since resided, and has 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 179 

built up a large practice. He has taken two post graduate courses in 
New York City, one on the Eye and Ear, and one on the Nose and 
Throat, and in both of these important scientific fields he is recog- 
nized as an authority and an expert. 

Dr. Tenney is a member of the Vermont State Medical Society, and 
also of the Washington County Medical Society, of which he was Pres- 
ident for three years. 

When Dr. Tenney came to Granville the educational interests of 
the village were in an unsatisfactory condition, and in need of reor- 
ganization and development. The village was divided into two 
opposing districts, each containing a district school. There were also 
two select schools. Very rarely was any Granville youth sent to col-, 
lege. Dr. Tenney interested himself in the work of placing the edu- 
cational affairs of the village upon a broad and intelligent basis, and 
succeeded in bringing about the consolidation of the opposing districts 
into one school. The select schools were also absorbed by securing 
their teachers for services in the Union School, and finally getting the 
schools in condition to be acceptable under the Regents. Largely 
through Dr. Tenney's efforts the schools developed from two district 
schools, with teachers employed at a salary of $400 per annum, to a 
splendid Union School, employing a principal on a salary of $1,400, 
and ten assistant teachers, all well paid, and Granville is now sending 
many of her young men to college. 



Genealogy of the Van Wormer Family. — Rev. Everardus Bogar- 
dus was born in Holland and emigrated to New Amsterdam in the 
year 1633. While pastor of the First Reformed Dutch Church of 
New Amsterdam, in the New Netherlands, he married Anneke Janse,. 
widow of Rodofl Jansen, in the year 1638. 

The Rev. Everardus Bogardus was shipwrecked and drowned while 
on the ship "Princess," bound for Holland on a visit, in 1657. 

The marriage of Everardus Bogardus and Anneke Janse is recorded 
in a book in the Surrogate's office, in New York City, bearing date 
of 1648. 

They had children, baptized as follows: William, baptized 1638; 
Cornelius, 1640; Jonas, 1643, and Peter, 1645. 



180 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

William Bogardus married Wintie Sybrant, and they had children 
as follows : Everardiis, Sytie and Anna. 

Anna Bogardus married Jacob Brower, and they had children born 
as follows: Sybrant, in 1682; Jacob, November 30, 1684;' William, 
May 8, 1687; Everardus, December 8, 1689, and Adam, in 1696. 

Sybrant Brower married Sarah Weber, and they had children as 
follows: Jacob, Arnout, Sybrant, Jannette, Petros, Annantie and 
Cornelius. 

Jacob Brower married Maria Bovey, April 6, 1717, and they had 
children christened as follows: Catryna. December 29, 1717; Nellitie, 
March 13, 1719; Patres, April 29, 1722; Atie, June 17, 1724; Matthew, 
January 15, 1727; Lina, March 30, 1729; Mariah, October 7, 1733; 
Ananatije, March i, 1737; Catalina, September 21, 1740, and Mathias, 
August 7, 1743. 

Henry Van Wormer married Catalina Brower, and they had children 
as follows: Jacob Van Wormer, Nellie Van Wormer, and perhaps 
others. 

Jacob Van Wormer, son of Henry and Catalina (Brower) Van Wor- 
mer, was a Revolutionary soldier, and served in the Fourteenth 
Albany County Regiment (Hoosick and Schaghticoke District) and 
was a member of the Third Company of said regiment, Mathew 
DeGarmo, Captain. Jacob served as a private until June 22, 1778, when 
he was made Ensign of the Company, and March 4, 1780, he was pro- 
moted and made Second Lieutenant of said company. See "Docu- 
ments Relating to the Colonial History of the State of New York," 
volume 15, pages 272, 504, or the "Archives of the State of New 
York — The Revolution," volume i, pages 272, 504 — prepared under 
the direction of the Board of Regents, by Barthold Fernow. Weed, 
Parsons & Company, Printers — 1887. 

At the close of the war Jacob came to Kingsbury from Schaghti- 
coke, when there were but seven families in that town. A few years 
later he removed to the site of the present village of West Fort Ann, 
and built the first sawmill on Podunk Brook. See Crisfield Johnson's 
History of Washington County, published by Everts & Ensign — Phil- 
adelphia — 1878. 

Jacob and Polly, his wife, resided at West Fort Ann as late as April 
8, 1814. See their deed of real estate to Liberty Branch, of that date, 
and recorded in Washington County Clerk's Office, June 13, 1815, in 
Liber M of Deeds, at page 199. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 181 

Peter Van Wormer, a son of Jacob, was born July i, 1791, and 
resided in Jefferson and Osweg-o Counties. Some time in the earlier 
part of the present century Peter visited relatives at West Fort Ann, 
and on returning, Jacob accompanied him to Ellisburgh, Jefferson 
County, where he died about the middle of August, 1829. Jacob was 
interred in the Woodville Cemetery, which is about two and one-half 
miles from southern Ellisburgh. After Jacob's death Peter moved to 
Oswego County, taking the family Bible of Jacob with him. 

Jacob Van Wormer married Polly Oiler, and they had children born 
as follows: John, February 10, 1771; Henry, February 25, 1773; Jen- 
nie, April I, 1775; Mary, May 19, 1777; Sarah, May 7, 1780; Cor- 
nelius, October 11, 1782; Jacob, December 12, 1784; Elizabeth, Octo- 
ber 14, 1787; Abraham, October 12, 1789; Peter, July i, 1791, and 
Lane, June 2, 1793. 

Henry Van Wormer (son of Jacob and Polly Oiler Van Wormer) 
married Olive Griswold, who was born November 23, 1774. They 
had children born as follows: Jenny, January 31, 1799; Lydia, March 
21, 1800; Jacob, November 30, 1801; Calvin, April i, 1803; Wesley, 
June 10, 1805; Polly Maryah, September i, 1807; Hester Ann, May 
21, 1810; Henry F., May 4, 1812; Olive Araminta, January 3, 1815, 
and William, April 29, 1818. 

Henry F. Van Wormer married Jane Maria Fuller, who was born 
December 9, 1824, and they had children born as follows: Francis 
Marion, born in 1846; William H., in 1848; Rodney, December 9, 
1850; Anzo Lettie, in 1853, and Adaline, in 1856. 

Francis Marion Van Wormer, now of Sandy Hill, N. Y., served in 
the Civil War, 1862-1865; his grandfather, Henry Van Wormer, served 
in the American army, at the battle of Plattsburgh, and his great 
grandfather, Jacob Van Wormer, served in the American army in the 
War of the Revolution, as hereinbefore stated. 

For Rodney Van Wormer, see "Bench and Bar," this History. 



Charles A. V.4ughx was born in the village of Fort Ann, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., September 14, 1864, and received his education in 
the local public schools. His first business experience was that of 
a clerk in the grocery store of H. C. Clements, which position he held 
for three years ; next he was clerk for John D. Earl four years, after 



182 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

which he and Mr. Earl formed a partnership, which still exists, under 
the firm name of Earl & Vaughn. 

Besides being a successful business man, Mr. Vaughn has always 
taken a deep and intelligent interest in local public affairs. He takes a 
particular interest in educational matters, and is a member of the Fort 
Ann School Board. He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity, 
and is Secretary of Mount Hope Lodge No. 260, F. & A. M. He is 
also an active member of the Baptist Church, and a warm advocate of 
everything tending towards advancement. 

In 1892 Mr. Vaughn married Eliza D. Getty, daughter of John H. 
and Emma (Miller) Getty, and they have a family of two sons, Herbert 
and Earl. Mr. Vaughn's parents were Whitman and Deborah Vaughn, 
both of whom were natives of the town of Fort Ann. 

There is no older or better known family in Washington County 
than the Vaughns, and the subject of this sketch is a worthy repre- 
sentative of an honored name. 



Henry A. Qua. — One of the most prosperous and enterprising 
merchants in Washington County is the subject of this sketch. He 
has always lived in the beautiful village of Cambridge, having been 
born on a farm only a few rods outside the corporate lines on April 
II, 1850. 

He was educated in the district schools and the Cambridge Wash- 
ington Academy, and began the active duties of life as a clerk, work- 
ing in two or three different stores until he was twenty-seven years of 
age, when he formed a partnership with Robert H. Watkins under 
the firm name of Qua & Watkins. Their store was located on the 
site occupied by Mr. Qua's present place of business. Both members 
of the firm being young men of large acquaintance and plenty of 
energy and enterprise, soon established a flourishing business which 
Mr. Qua still continues to hold. 

On January i, 1894, after seventeen years of congenial partnership, 
Mr. Watkins retired from the firm to enter the hardware business, 
and Mr. Qua became, and is now, sole proprietor of the business, 
dealing in groceries, boots and shoes, hats and caps, and so on. 

In 1887 the firm suffered a severe loss by fire in common with sev- 
eral others. This was the time when the Ackley Block was burned 



BIOGRAPHICAL 183 

to the ground. The firm immediately rebuilt the store, putting- in all 
modern improvements and equipping it in every way for the expedi- 
tious conduct of the business. 

Mr. Qua has always identified himself with the Republican part}^ 
and has been an influential worker in its ranks. He has frequently 
been delegate to Republican County conventions and was a member 
of the Board of Education for nine years, and was one of those who 
strongly advocated the building of the new Union Graded School. 

As a public citizen Mr. Qua has ever associated himself with, and 
used his influence to advance the interests of any movements which 
would be a benefit to his village or county. He is a man with Chris- 
tian zeal and influence and is an elder in the Presbyterian Church in 
which he was also a deacon for eight years. 

Mr. Qua is treasurer of the Cambridge Fair Association, and the, 
great financial success of this Association has been largely contributed 
to by his aid and advice. 

On April i6, 1879, Mr. Qua married Alma King, daughter of Jona- 
than S. King of Cambridge, N. Y. 



Albert C. Vaughan, son of John and Almira (Hovey) Vaughan, 
was born at Massena, St. Lawrence County, N. Y., September 4, 1845, 
and was educated in the public schools of his native place. 

At the age of sixteen years Mr. Vaughan left school to enlist in 
Company H, 60th Regiment, New York Volunteers, in which he 
served out his. term of enlistment, namely : two years and nine months. 
At the expiration of this term he re-enlisted in the same company and 
regiment, and served until August 25, 1865, when he received his hon- 
orable discharge at Ogdensburg, N. Y., being one of the few men 
of today who served throughout the entire War of the Rebellion. He 
was twice wounded during his service, once at the battle of Chancel- 
lorsville, and again slightly at Lookout Mountain. Shortly after he 
was mustered out he came to Fort Ann and settled, making it his 
permanent home. From 1865 to 1877 he was engaged in boating on 
the Champlain canal. In 1877 he was appointed Deputy Sheriff of 
Washington County, which position he held and faithfully filled for 
eight succeeding years. For the last twenty years he has been 
engaged in different lines, principally as speculator. 



184 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Vaughan has always been a staunch Republican, enjoying the 
fullest confidence of his party, and on June 4, 1S89, he was appointed 
by President Harrison to the position of Postmaster at Fort Ann. He 
takes a lively interest in all public affairs, and has been Trustee of the 
village of Fort Ann, and also a member of the Board of Education. 
He was the organizer of Lowe Washington Post No. ;^;^, G. A. R. , 
and has held all the offices in this post. He is also a member of 
Mount Hope Lodge No. 260, F. & A. M. 

On May 6, 1868, Mr. Vaughan married Elsie M. Vaughn, daughter 
of Washington Vaughn, of Fort Ann, 

The Vaughans are of English descent, and the family has been 
notably identified with the history of Northern New York since 
pioneer days. Benjamin Vaughan, grandfather of Albert C. Vaughan, 
was one of three brothers who came from Rhode Island and settled in 
Northern New York when the country was a wilderness. He served, 
as a soldier in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, 
and afterwards settled in Plattsburgh, N. Y., where he died at a very 
advanced age. His son, John Vaughan, father of the subject of this 
sketch, was born at Plattsburgh, Clinton County, N. Y., and died 
there February 9, 1891, at the age of seventy-eight years. 

Mr. Vaughan is one of the prominent men of Washington County, 
both in business and public life, and has been an important factor in 
the public affairs of the town of Fort Ann for the past quarter of a 
century. 



Edward Wall was born in the town of Webster, Mass., in the 
year 1833, and received his education in the schools of his native 
place. On March 14, 1874, he came to the town of Fort Ann, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., and took charge of the Kane's Falls Woolen 
Mills. For a period of eighteen years, from 1874 until 1892, he con- 
diicted these mills, and was principally instrumental in giving them 
the high reputation which they have attained all over the country. In 
1892 he built his knitting mills at Fort Ann village, which he is now 
conducting with great success. He employs a large force of opera- 
tives, and his mills are kept running night and day. His product of 
knit goods have a high reputation all over the United States. 

Mr. Wall has never taken any active part in public affairs, the 
demands of his manufacturing enterprise taking all of his time, but 



BIOGRAPHICAL 185 

he is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, with which he 
has been united since i860. 

In 1 85 1 Mr. Wall married Vesta Ann Smith, at North Adams, Mass. 
They have three children, namely: Robert Wall, who is a professor 
in a college in Virginia; Edward Wall, who is associated in business 
with his father, and Miss Vesta Wall. 

Mr. Wall's parents were James and Mary Wall, and both were 
natives of Ireland. 

Mr. Wall's knitting- mills are the only industrial enterprise in the 
village of Fort Ann, and one of the few manufacturing concerns in 
Washington County. The enterprise has been brought to its present 
flourishing condition entirely through Mr. Wall's enterprise and busi- 
ness ability. 

He is one of the successful men of the county, and also one who 
takes an interest in everything pertaining to the interests of his 
locality and country. 



H. W. Vandewerker, M. D., who has for some time been an 
acknowledged leading physician of Sandy Hill, was born at Fort Mil- 
ler in the town of Fort Edward, Washington County, N. Y. , October 
8, 1855. He received his literary education at the Fort Edward In- 
stitute, from which he was graduated in the class of 1875, and the 
Albany Normal School from which he graduated in 1877. He alsa 
took a course in Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
In the mean time, however, he had been teaching school, which he 
began in 1875, occupying positions in various places, among others in 
the Glens Falls Seminary where he taught for two 3'ears. His teach- 
ing career extended up to 1884 when he went to New York City and 
became an apothecary in the Homoeopathic Hospital, during which 
time he was also attending college. This position he occupied for 
one year. During the second and third years he was assistant house 
surgeon in the hospital. He then entered the New York Homoeo- 
pathic Medical College, and after a highly creditable course was 
graduated in the class of 1888 with the degree of M. D. In October 
of that year he went to Hartford, Conn., and was interne in the 
Mattewee Hospital until 1890, in which year he established himself 
permanently at Sandy Hill. 



186 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

From the very outset his success as a physician was assured and he 
soon had not only a large practice, but is recognized as a lead- 
ing physician of the county. His great success is directly attrib- 
utable to his progressiveness in his profession, although, at the same 
time, he is thoroughly practical and retains all the best attainments 
of the older schools. He is also highly popular personally and is 
distinguished as much for his culture as for his professional learning. 

He is a member of the State Homoeopathic Society of New York 
and of the American Institute of Homoeopathy, and is a valued con- 
tributor to some of the leading medical journals of his school of prac- 
tice. He is also medical examiner for many insurance companies. 

On June 20, 1883, Dr. Vandewerker married Mary, daughter of 
John and Jane (Wing) Andrews of Patten's Mills, Washington 
County. His parents were James H. and Mary (Wheeler) Vande- 
werker, both of whom were natives of Saratoga County. 

His grandfather, Martin Vandewerker, was one of four brothers 
who came to this country from Holland in early Colonial days and 
took up and settled upon a tract of land in the town of Northumber- 
land, Saratoga County. From these brothers all the Vandewerkers 
in this part of the country have descended. 

His maternal grandfather, Hiram Wheeler, was a son of Alonzo 
Wheeler, who was born and reared in Saratoga County, and who was 
one of the historic figures of that historic county. He kept the old 
Wheeler tavern located midway between Saratoga Springs and Glens 
Falls, and later on he owned and conducted a store at Fortsville. 

James Vandewerker, the Doctor's father, was born in 1829 at 
Northumberland, Saratoga County. He learned the trade of jeweler 
and was for many years a prominent jeweler at Fort Miller. 



Charles W. Williamson was born in the town of Putnam, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., and was educated in the common schools of 
his native town, and at the Seminary of Putnam, N. Y. 

Mr. Williamson is both a farmer and boarding house keeper, and 
with the exception of three years spent in Fort Edward, has always 
lived on the same place. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, 
being a member of the Blue Lodge, No. 794, Mount Defiance Lodge, 
Ticonderoga. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 187 

Mr. Williamson is a Republican in politics and has always given his 
party his most liberal support, and has himself held several important 
offices. He was Town Clerk for the long term of thirty years, 
namely: from 1868 to 1898, except the time spent in Fort Edward. 
He was also Town Collector for two years. Constable six years and 
Deputy Sheriff six years. 

On July 28th, 1883, Charles W. Williamson married Louise Clark 
of Ontario, Canada. Mr. Williamson's parents were Daniel and Mary 
Ann (Race) Williamson. 

The Williamson family is of Scotch descent, the grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch coming to this country from Scotland in 1803. 



Lemuel E. Wicks was born at Lake George February 27, 1877. 
His parents were Charles H. and Mary (Lander) Wicks. He was 
educated in the Union School at Glens Falls and after completing his 
education worked on a farm by the month for a time and then settled 
on the farm where he now resides, where he carries on a general 
farming business, but makes his dairy business a specialty. Mr. 
Wicks is a Republican in politics and is a member of Fort Edward 
Lodge No. 267, F. & A. M. 

On April 4, 1900, Lemuel E. Wicks married Julia E. Carl, daughter 
of John Carl. 

The Wicks family is of Scotch descent. 



William Grant Watson, son of Vernon and Mary (Barber) Wat- 
son, was born in the town of Greenwich, Washington County, N. Y., 
January 14, 1837. He was educated in the schools of his native town 
and has always been a farmer excepting three years, when he was 
serving his country as a faithful soldier in the War of the Rebellion. 
He was among the men who took up arms during the first year of the 
war, having enlisted November i, 1861, in Company C, 77th New 
York Volunteer Infantry. He served for three years and received 
his honorable discharge in the fall of 1864. 

On November 14, 1861, William Grant Watson married Josephine, 
daughter of Dailey and Mariah (Baldwin) Kenyon, who died in No- 



188 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

vember, 1868, leaving one daughter, Nettie M., who married John E. 
Legget. 

In August, 1872, Mr. Watson married for his second wife Mary J., 
daughter of Alexander and Reconcile (Terry) Carswell. They have 
one daughter, Jennie, wife of John W. Livermore. 

Mr. Watson is one of the respected and representative farmers of 
the town of Fort Edward, and is a member of Mills Post, No. 491, G. 
A. R., of Grange No. 812, and of the Baptist Church. 

He has also served the town for two terms as Justice of the Peace 
and as Assessor for two terms. 



Albert Whiteside was born in South Cambridge, Washington 
County, N. Y., June 29, 1846, and was educated at the Cambridge 
Washington Academy. After leaving school he embarked in the 
business of farming, which he has pursued all his life. 

On September 26, 1881, he married Ida Pease, daughter of Albert 
S. Pease, journalist, and founder of the Troy Daily Press. They had 
one child, Ida Whiteside. Mrs. Whiteside died, and subsequently, on 
January i, 1885, Mr. Whiteside married Nellie Pease, a sister of his 
first wife. They have two boys, Henry and John. 

Mr. Whiteside's parents were Henry and Margaret Whiteside. 

The founder of the Whiteside family in America was Phineas White- 
side, who was a native of Tyrone County, Ireland, where he was born 
January 31, 17 16. He came to America and settled in Lancaster 
County, Pennsylvania. He was Ruling Elder in a Scotch Covenanter 
Church, and came to Cambridge in that capacity with John Cuthbert- 
son, a missionary, in 1764. In 1766 he again came north and leased 
1400 acres of land, in what is now South Cambridge, Washington 
County, He had a family of six sons and one daughter, and as his 
sons came of age, he gave them 200 acres of land each. His son John 
took the farm now owned by his grandson, Robert McMurray; Wil- 
liam took the farm now owned by Thomas Watt ; Peter took the farm 
now owned by his granddaughter, Mrs. Catharine Thayer; Thomas 
took what is now Mrs. Marion Whiteside's farm, and Edward, the farm 
now owned by Albert Whiteside. 

Oliver remained in the old homestead with his father, which is now 
in possession of Mrs. Thayer. The daughter, Ann, married John 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 189 

Cochrane, and received the farm now owned by Jeremiah Donahue. 

Three of these sons, namely: John, William and Peter, were Revo- 
lutionary soldiers. 

One of the oldest churches in Washington County is the church at 
West Cambridge, known as the Whiteside Church, which was started 
by a legacy of one hundred pounds sterling, left for that purpose in 
the will of Mrs. Phineas Whiteside. Other members of the family 
contributed enough so as to have the church completed in 1800. It 
is, therefore, one century old. The first pastor was Rev. John Dun- 
lap. In 1825 the church was remodeled. For the first thirty-five 
years it was conducted in connection with the Associated Reform 
Church (now the United Presbyterian) of Cambridge, but since 1873 
it has been associated with the Coila Church, and Rev. John Scott is 
the pastor. 

Albert Whiteside has one of the finest farms in New York State. It 
comprises 250 acres of fertile rolling land, and his residence is within 
fifteen minutes' drive of the railroad depot at South Cambridge. 



Walter A. Warner, son of Walter G. and Mary E. (O'Rielly) 
Warner, was born in Whitehall, N. Y., March i, 1865. He attended 
the public schools of his native town and graduated from the High 
School in 1 88 1. He then accepted a clerkship with Fred Gaylord, 
with whom he remained for a short time, when he decided to take up 
dentistry, and went to Elizabeth, N. J., and entered the office of his 
uncle. Dr. Eaton, a noted dentist of that city. After two years in 
that office he took an aversion to dentistry and went to New York, 
where he soon found employment as bookkeeper in a large wholesale 
house, and remained there for three years. At this time a better 
position was offered him in the employ of S. K. Griswold, Whitehall, 
where he acted in the capacity of bookkeeper for a period of nine 
years. On August i, 1898, he formed a partnership with James P. 
King, under the style of King & Warner, and they are one of the rep- 
resentative business houses of Whitehall. They deal extensively in 
gent's furnishing, boots and shoes. 

Mr. Warner is a descendant of Colonel Seth Warner. His ancestors 
on his father's side were of Welsh descent. The Clarks, of which 
familv he is a descendant, came to Massachusetts in 1630. His great 



190 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

grandfather, James Adams, came from England and settled in West 
Haven, Vt. His father was in the War of the Rebellion, and was on 
General Paul's staff as Adjutant. At the time of his death he was 
Cashier of the old National Bank. 



Levi Wolfe was born in Western, N. Y., in November, i860, and 
received his education in the district schools of his native town. His 
first business occupation was in the capacity of clerk for C. A. Hicks, 
which position he occupied two years. In 1884 he began the manu- 
facture of cheese on his own account at North Granville, and has since 
been continuously engaged in this occupation. His factory has a 
capacity of 125,000 pounds a year. 

In 1883 Mr. Wolfe married Lettie Pearl, and they have a family of 
six children, namely: E. Gordon, Beulah, Jessie M., Harry L., 
Ruth and Davis. 

Mr. Wolfe's father, Jacob Wolfe, died in 1896. His mother, Agatha 
(Hess) Wolfe, died in 1895. 

Mr. Wolfe's business and factory are at North Granville, but he 
resides in the town of Whitehall, on his farm, and is one of the most 
prominent and respected citizens of the two towns. 



Edgar P. Walker, son of William and Rachel (Wetherbee) Walker, 
was born in the town of Dresden, Washington County, N. Y., July 30, 
1849, 3-11^ was educated in the public schools of Dresden and Bolton, 
at a select school in Sandy Hill, and at the Warrensburgh Academy. 
His first employment was in the capacity of a clerk for G. V. Lansing, 
at Stillwater, where he remained one year, after which he was one 
year with J. J. Lansing. He then engaged in business for himself 
for two years, after which he was engaged in farming until 1886, when 
he went to Saratoga. He remained in Saratoga two years, and then 
returned to Whitehall and established a grocery business, which he has 
since conducted, and built up into a large and flourishing enterprise. 

On November 9, 1899, he was burned out, and in less than five 
hours after the fire, he was located in his present place on Canal 
street, where his trade followed him. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 191 

In April, 1877, Mr. Walker married Abbie M., daughter of Andrew 
J. and Elizabeth (Osgood) Walker. They have a family of seven 
children, namely: Isadore, Jesse, Grace, Helen, Chester, Stella and 
Gertrude. 

Mr. Walker is a prominent Mason, and is a member of Phoenix 
Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M., Champlain Chapter No. 25, and Washing- 
ton Commandery No. 33, Saratoga Springs. 

He is a very progressive business man, and has many friends among 
his townsmen. 



L. G. WiNEGAR was born in the town of Fort Ann, September 13, 
1 86 1, and received his education in the district schools. His first 
occupation was that of a farmer, in which industry he was engaged 
until 1 89 1, when he opened a general store in West Fort Ann and has 
since conducted that business with marked and increasing success. 

Mr. Winegar was first married to Eva Skinner, who died leaving 
one son, Carmin L. Winegar, who was born Septemiber 3, 1885, and 
one daughter, Mabel E., who was born September 5, 1886. On Feb- 
ruary II, 1891, Mr. Winegar married Helen M. Belden. Mr. Wine- 
gar's parents were Chester and Jane Winegar, both natives of Fort 
Ann. Mr. Winegar is one of the most enterprising and successful 
business men in the town of Fort Ann. 



John R. Willett was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y., June 21, 1830. He is a farmer by occupation, and has 
been a veterinary surgeqn for thirty-five years, and is still engaged in 
both his occupation and profession. 

Mr. Willett is a prominent member of the Washington County 
Agricultural Society, in which he has taken an active part, for over 
twenty years. He was President of the society for one term and has 
held nearly every office in the society. 

In politics he is a Democrat and held the oflfice of Town Assessor 
for three years. He ran for the office of County Sheriff in 1891 and 
made a splendid contest, surprising the Republicans of this strong 
Republican county by carrying several Republican towns by good 
majorities. 



192 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In i860 John R. Willett married Nancy W. Harsha. Their children 
are Jennie, wife of Edward McEachron of Omaha, Neb., and Hen- 
rietta, wife of Samuel B. Charles, M. D., of Denver, Col. 

Mr. Willetts' parents were Cornelius and Anna (Lytle) Willett, 
Cornelius Willett was a soldier in the War of 181 2. He was not of 
age when he enlisted, but was assisted to a position in the American 
ranks by his patriotic mother. His grandfather was a patriot soldier 
in the Revolutionary War. 



George H. Wilbur was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
County, N. Y., October 17, 1859, and is the son of George and Hulda 
Jane (Robinson) Wilbur. 

He was educated in the district schools and at Marshall Seminary, 
and has always followed the occupation of farming. He is better 
known, however, as a stock raiser than an agriculturist, and is a prom- 
inent breeder of Ohio Improved Chester swine and Guernsey cattle. 

He takes quite a prominent part in local politics but has never 
cared for or sought public office. 

George H. Wilbur married Bessie L. St. Mary, daughter of Eugene 
and Emma (Benway) St. Mary on February 9, 1886. 



Harlan A. Walker was born in the town of Dresden, Washington 
County, N. Y., December 20, 1866. He was the son of Amos and 
Sarah (Bartholomew) Walker. 

He received his early education in the district schools and at the 
Whitehall High School, and after leaving the latter institution, he 
took a position with George L. demons as bookkeeper. This position 
he filled with ability for some years and left it to accept his present 
position, that of agent for the Delaware & Hudson Railroad Company 
at Chubbs Dock, N. Y. 

Mr. Walker is a member of Phoenix Lodge, No. 96, F. & A. M., at 
Whitehall, and also of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F. He held 
the office of Supervisor for the town of Dresden for a period of three 
years. 

On January 24, 1888, Harlan A. Walker married Elma Rice, and 
they have two children, namely: Ronald and Anna. 

Mr. Walker's father was born in England. 






-^^^i-n-^^^-t-x^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 193 

Valentine Williams. — The subject of this sketch, who is one 
of the best known and most popular citizens of Fort Edward, N. Y., 
was born in the state of Indiana, but removed to Pennsylvania with 
his parents when quite young-. 

In his nineteenth year he enlisted in 1861 in Company A, 49th 
Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers and served throughout the entire 
war, participating in many pitched battles and other engagements. 
He was wounded three times, once in each leg and once in the head. 
His regiment saw so much hard fighting that several companies, 
including his own, were badly cut up, so that two or more companies 
were merged into one, and in this way, he belonged to Company D at 
the time of his discharge, which he received in August, 1865. 

Mr. Williams is a prominent Mason, a member of Blue Lodge No. 
267, F. & A. M., and Fort Edward Chapter, No. 191, R. A. M. He, 
is also a member of the G. A. R., and was Quartermaster of his post 
for two years. 

In politics Mr. Williams has always been an active and ardent 
Republican, working for the best interests of his party, and has been 
Inspector of Election several different times. 

In March, 1900, he was elected Justice of the Peace for the town of 
Fort Edward and discharges the duties of his office in an eminently 
creditable manner. 

Mr. Williams located in the town of Fort Edward March 30, 1888, 
and in 1893 embarked in the insurance business. He represents many 
of the best insurance companies doing business in America, and 
transacts a large volume of business owing to his honorable methods 
and personal popularity. 



Alexander Warnock was born at Sandy Hill, Washington County, 
N. Y., May i, 1848, and was educated in the common schools and at 
the Argyle Academy. Mr. Warnock has followed the occupation of- 
farming all his life, and is a promineni Mason and a member of Her- 
schell Lodge No. 508, F, & A. M., at Hartford. In politics he is a 
strong Republican and always takes an active interest in the success 
of his party and has served as delegate on different occasions. On 
February 18, 1875, Mr. Warnock married Lucendia Gilchrist of Hart- 

[y] 



194 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ford. Mr. Warnock's parents were James and Mary Ann (Torrance) 
Warnock. 

James Warnock was born in Antrim County, Ireland, in 1814, and 
came to America about the year 1846, locating at Sandy Hill. His 
wife, Mary Ann, was also born in Ireland, County Derry, and came 
to America in 1846. Mr. Warnock is one of three children, Robert, 
Matthew and himself. 



Harry P. Wisely, D. D. S.— The leading dentist of Whitehall is 
Harry P. Wisely, who is the son of Robert and Gertrude (Taylor) 
Wisely and was born in St. Johns, New Brunswick, March 24, 1873. 
After completing his public school education he entered Mt. Allison 
University, Saco, where he pursued his studies for two years and then 
entered the Philadelphia Dental College from which he was graduated 
in the class of 1894. In April of that year he located in Whitehall 
and opened an office for the practice of his profossion. Here he has 
since resided and has built up a large and influential clientele. On 
August 25, 1897, Dr. Wisely married Maud, daughter of DeWitt and 
Laura Leonard. They have one daughter, Muriel, born June 3, 
1898. 

Dr. Wisely is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., and 
Whitehall Encampment No. 69. 



RoswELL Ethan Warren was born in Pawlet, Vt., November 11. 
1850, and was brought to Washington County when one and one-half 
years of age, by his parents. He received his education at the public 
school, Landsley's Business College of Poultney, Vt., and at Rutland 
Academy, from which he was graduated in 1870. His first active 
occupation was working on his father's farm for six years, when he 
moved to Poultney and embarked in the livery and produce business, 
in which he was engaged for six years. During five years of this 
time he was Deputy Sheriff, Constable and Collector. In 1880 he 
returned to the town of Hampton, Washington County, where he has 
since resided. 

Mr. Warren conducts a general store at Hampton, N. Y., and has 



BIOGRAPHICAL 195 

been engaged in this business for the last three years; he is also 
largely interested in real estate, and owns a fine farm near the village 
of Hampton. 

Mr. Warren has always been an active and successful business man, 
and is prominent both in commercial and political circles in Washing- 
ton County. He is a Republican in politics and has been elected 
Supervisor of the town of Hampton on three different occasions, first 
in 1887, then in 1899, and again in 1900. He has also held the office 
of Assessor, and that of Deputy Sheriff, the latter for a period of 
twelve years ; he has also held, by appointment of the Governor of the 
State of New York, the important position of Assistant Sergeant-at- 
Arms at Albany for the last three terms of the Legislature. Mr. 
Warren is a prominent Mason and a member of Morning Star Lodge 
No. 37, F. & A. M. ; he is also a member of Poultney Lodge, Knights 
of Pythias. 

On January i, 1870, Mr. Warren married Harriet, daughter of 
Rufus and Prudence L. (Rice) Clark. They have a family of three 
sons, namely: Frederick, Ford and Benjamin. 

Mr. Warren's parents were Squire A. and Mary A. (Place) Warren. 
His father was a native of Hampton and his mother of Malone, N. Y. 
His grandfather on his mother's side was Roswell Place, who was a 
soldier in the Revolutionary War. Mr. Warren's grandfather was 
Ethan Warren and his grandmother was Sally (Willis) Warren. His 
great-grandfather, Caleb Warren, was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
War, so that he is a descendant from Revolutionary ancestors on both 
his paternal and maternal side. 

Mr. Warren's ancestors in America were of English descent, and 
first settled in the state of Massachusetts. 



D. L. Valentine was born in the town of Jackson, Washington 
County, N. Y., June 13, 1849, and is a son of Joseph and Elizabeth 
(Wright) Valentine. He received his early education in the district 
schools, and subsequently attended the Cambridge Academy. After 
leaving the academy he worked on the farm with his father for fifteen 
years, and then took control of the farm, which he has inherited. At 
one time Mr. Valentine was engaged in the raising of Poland China 



196 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

swine, and was a member of the Ohio Poland China Record Company. 
He now makes a specialty of raising fine sheep, known as the Cots- 
wold breed. Mr. Valentine's ancestors were Germans, and settled in 
New York City, where they owned sixty acres of land, on which 
Trinity Church now stands. 



John G. Williams, the leading- druggist of the thriving village of 
Granville, N. Y., was born in Festiniog, Wales, January i8, 1855. 
His parents were thrifty, intelligent people, and though poor, were 
anxious their children should receive a good education, and gave 
them such advantages as were in their power. 

The subject of this sketch came to this country at the age of twelve 
years with his elder brother. He attended school three years at 
Elizabeth, N. J., after which he obtained employment with a pro- 
fessor at Princeton College, and while there received private tutorage 
evenings from his brother, now Rev. Robert G. Williams. At sixteen 
years of age he secured employment in the drug store of Joseph 
Priest at Princeton and remained with him nearly seventeen years. 
Mr. Williams, then thirty-two years old, went to Granville, N. Y., 
and launched out in the drug business for himself, his first store being 
located in the Joseph Green building, where he remained seven years 
from which place he moved to the Reynolds block. Remaining there 
three years, he again moved to the Roberts block, where he is now 
engaged in the largest drug business in the eastern part of the county 
and carries a much larger and more complete stock of drugs than two- 
thirds of the metropolitan druggists, his store being up to date in 
every particular. 

On Thanksgiving Day, 1898, Mr. Williams was honored with the 
appointment of Postmaster at Granville, N. Y., by President McKin- 
ley, and his postmastership reflects very creditably on his characteris- 
tic thoroughness and attention to details. 

John G. Williams is distinctly a man among men. He is of the 
progressive sort, uniting his efforts with others for the well being and 
advancement of any commendable enterprise or cause. 

He is a member of the following fraternities: Red Men, Granville 
Lodge, No. 55, F. & A. M., Granville Chapter, R. A. M., Washington 
Commandery, No. 33, K. T., Oriental Temple of the Mystic Shrine, 



BIOGRAPHICAL 197 

Troy, N. Y., Whitehall Council of R. & S. M., No. 52, District Dep- 
uty for two years of the Odd Fellows for the counties of Washington 
and Essex, and member of Granville Encampment, No. 138, I. O. O. 
F,, also Llewarch Hen of True Ivorites of Middle Granville. He is 
the founder of Mettowee Lodge, No. 559, I. O. O. F., and he is the 
present District Deputy Grand Patriarch of the District of Washing- 
ton County. 

On November 5, 1890, Mr. Williams was united in marriage to 
Miss Abby Hughes, daughter of J. T. Hughes, merchant of Middle 
Granville. Mrs. Williams is a member of the Eastern Star Encamp- 
ment at Granville, and is a lady of great refinement and dignity. 
They are both members of the Welch Congregational Church at 
Granville. 



Henrv L. Tidmarsh. — It is only in recent years that manufacturing 
and industrial enterprises have become a prominent feature in the 
commercial life and history of Washington County. Prominent 
among the few promoters of industrial enterprises is the subject of 
this sketch, H. L. Tidmarsh, who is thoroughly representative of 
what may be called the younger circle of Washington County's best 
business men. He was born at Wauconda. Lake County, 111., October 
9, 1862, and received a liberal education in the public schools of his 
native place. 

In August, 1880, he came to the village of Sandy Hill and learned 
the trade of machinest with the firm of Wells & Van Wormer, after- 
wards working in the American Steam Boiler Works at Chicago. He 
subsequently returned to Sandy Hill, and in 1885 embarked in the 
book and stationery business, and was elected clerk for the town of 
Kingsbury in the same year. In 1886 he disposed of his book and 
stationery business, and became connected with the Pratt Manufac- 
turing Company, of South Boston, as traveling salesman. After a 
short term with this house he embarked in the hotel business at Lake 
George, where he conducted a summer resort for two seasons. 
During 1888 and 1889 he was employed in the paper mill of Allen 
Brothers Company, of Sandy Hill, and in July, 1890, he organized 
the Friction Pulley and Machine Works, which has become a promi- 
nent factor in the industrial life of Sandy Hill. At first George W. 



198 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Doremus and William W. Wells were associated with him, but the 
company has been chang^ed, and at present is represented as follows: 
Henry L. Tidmarsh, President; William W. Wells, Vice-President; 
George W. Wait, Secretary and Treasurer. 

Mr. Tidmarsh takes an active interest in the public welfare of 
Sandy Hill and has been one of the trustees of the village for sev- 
eral years. 

On October 5, 1892, Mr. Tidmarsh married Catharine M. Murphy 
of Paterson, N. J., and they have one son, William R. Tidmarsh. 

Mr. Tidmarsh's parents were William and Harriet (Wells) Tid- 
marsh. William Tidmarsh was a native of Teswith, Oxfordshire, 
England. He was born in 1833 and came to America in 1856. He 
spent a few years in the city of Cleveland, and in Toledo, Ohio, when 
he settled in Lake County, 111. For several years after coming to 
America he followed the profession of music teaching, and served as 
band instructor during the civil war. He is still a resident of Wau- 
conda. 111. 



Rev. Jeremiah F. Yates was born at Greenbush, Rensselaer 
County, N. Y., February 26, 1826. He received his preliminary 
education and was prepared for college at the Troy Conference Acad- 
emy, but his health failing him, he was debarred from taking his 
intended college course. Subsequently, however, he received the 
degree of M. A. from Middlebury College, Vt. 

Rev. Mr. Yates has devoted his life to the preaching of the gospel, 
and has been so employed for over fifty-three years, in connection 
with the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was sixteen years in the 
Troy Conference, and sixteen years in the Rock River Conference in 
Illinois. During the years 1862-63, he was pastor of a church in Fort 
Edward, and during the time he was a member of the Rock River 
Conference, in Illinois, he was General Grant's pastor, in Galena, 111. 
For twenty years he has not been in the active pastorate. 

Rev. Mr. Yates has, through his long study and large experience, 
acquired a sound education and a high culture of mind, and possesses 
undoubted poetical talent, although his work as a minister has pre- 
vented his cultivating this faculty. 

In 1849 Mr. Yates married Susan Northrop, of Greenbush, N. Y. 
Of this marriage six children are living, namely: George Henry, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 199 

'Sarah Elizabeth, Ida Mary, Francis Garrett, William Arthur and 
Jessie Alida. 

Rev. Mr. Yates has fifteen grandchildren and three great grand- 
children. His first wife died in 1869. He married for his present 
wife Mary E., widow of Frederick D. Hodgman. 

Governor Yates, of New York, was a member of a collateral branch 
of Rev. Mr. Yates' ancestry. 



Abram Wakeman was born in the City of Troy, April 23, 1850. 
He was educated at the Rev. Joseph D. Hull's Institute, New York 
City, and the Collegiate and Commercial Institute of New Haven, 
Conn. On April 10, 1872, Abram Wakeman married Louise, daugh- 
ter of George O. and Helen N. (Shaw) Vail. They have four child- 
ren, namely: George, Annette, Elizabeth and Harwood. Mr. Wake- 
man has been engaged in the coffee business since boyhood, and has 
made the same a close study, spending five years among the coffee 
plantations of Hayti, also inventing several valuable machines for 
the manipulating and cleaning of coffee. On the organization in 1883 
of the Coffee Exchange and Lower Wall Street Business Men's Asso- 
ciation, . Mr. Wakeman was chosen Secretary, which position he has 
held ever since. He is also a member of the Society of Descendants 
of Colonial Governors and Sons of the Revolution. His father, 
Abram Wakeman, was a personal friend of President Lincoln, and 
one of the founders of the Republican party, holding the position of 
Alderman of New York City, Member of the State Legislature, Mem- 
ber of Congress, Postmaster and Surveyor of the port of New York. 
Mr. Wakeman was chosen Colonel of the 8ist Pennsylvania, but at 
the request of President Lincoln, he resigned, selecting his friend, 
Colonel Miller to fill the position. Colonel Miller was killed in a 
skirmish soon after going to the front. During the draft riots Mr. 
Wakeman's residence was destroyed, owing to his strong Abolition 
views. The ancestors of his family were among the early settlers of 
our country. Samuel, son of Francis Wakeman of Bewdley, Worces- 
tershire, England, came to New England in the ship Lion, Captain 
Pierce, and settled in Roxbury, November 2, 1831, and was made 
•Constable. His son John was for many years one of the Deputies of 



200 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the New Haven Colony, and its first Treasurer. He died at New 
Haven in 1658. His son, Rev. Samuel, married August 28, 1656, 
Hannah, daughter of Governor Stephen Goodyear, who died March 
8, 1692. His son John was very prominent in the Colony of Connec- 
ticut, serving as Deputy for twenty-three sessions. In May, 1704, he 
was appointed Captain of the Fairfield Training Band. His commis- 
sion is still in possession of the family. His son John moved to 
Greenfield Hill, Conn., Aprils, 1730. He married Catherine Gilbert. 
He died April 19, 1777. His son Ebenezer married Elizabeth Webb 
May 3, 1764, who died in 1776. His second wife was Sarah Shelton. 
During the Revolution he served in Captain David Dimon's Company, 
Connecticut Militia. His son Jonathan married Clara, daughter of 
Thaddeus Wakeman, August 28, 1815. Mr. Wakeman's mother, Mary 
Harwood, was a descendant from the distinguished family of Har- 
woods. George was the first Treasurer of the Massachusetts Colony. 
His son, Henry Harwood and wife Elizabeth, came from England 
with Governor Winthrop. Andrew Harwood, presumably brother of 
Henry, was made Freeman m Boston, February 28, 1643. His son 
James went from Boston to Springfield, Mass., 1649, and was Free- 
man from 1654 to 1664. His son James entered the Colonial Army in 
King Phillips' War in Captain Turner's Company. He married Lydia 
Barrett, daughter of John and Sarah Barrett, April 11, 1659. He died 
August I, 1 7 19. His son James was born September 30, 1695. He 
moved to Littleton, Mass., in 171 7, remaining until 1727 when he 
went to Concord. His son James was born in 1728. In 1755 he en- 
listed in Captain James Todd's Company, Colonel Peter Oilman's 
Regiment, to serve in the war against the French and Indians. He 
also served in the Company of Roger's Rangers in 1759, and was at 
the storming of Quebec, Canada, under General Wolfe. In 1760 he 
joined Captain Lovewell's Company, Colonel James Goffe's Regi- 
ment. The beginning of the Revolution found him in Captain Wil- 
liam Walker's Company, Colonel James Rud's Regiment. 

They were present at the Battle of Bunker Hill. It was supposed 
he died in the army during December, 1777. His wife's name was 
Clogson, living in Londonderry, N. H., and lived to the advanced 
age of ninety-nine years. His son Archibald was born August, 1762, 
and entered the army in 1778, when only sixteen years old. He was 
one of those who were sold to the British by Benedict Arnold. After 
the war he went to Springfield, Yt., where he married Susannah, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 201 

daughter of Coombs and Prudence House. He died in 1837 and his 
wife in 184S. His son Cyrus married Mary, daughter of Stephen Lee 
and Mary Little. The family of the Lees is too well known to need 
further mention. 



Hon. Henry G. Burleigh was born in the town of Canaan, Graf- 
ton County, New Hampshire, June 2, 1832, and received such educa- 
tion as the public schools of his day afforded in his native town and 
at Ticonderoga, to which place his parents removed in 1846. 

His first business experience was that of a clerk with the firm of 
Wilson & Calkins, in what was then known as the old brick store, at 
Ticonderoga. From the very outset he evinced that knowledge and 
zeal for business which distinguished his entire career, and in addition 
to faithfully discharging his duties as a clerk, he also iinproved his 
time by judicious reading. 

In 1850 his employers failed, the business iiltimately coming into 
the hands of Mr. Burleigh. Later he added the industry of building 
canal boats, and also furnishing general supplies for boatmen. In 
1858 he admitted his brother, Brackett, into partnership, and the busi- 
ness was enlarged and extended. In 1859 Mr. Burleigh entered the 
transportation business, and formed the firm of Burleigh & Marshall, 
Mr. Marshall being connected with the transportation business only. 
At first their towing was done by the Whitehall Transportation Com- 
pany, but later by the Port Henry Towing Company, of which Mr. 
Burleigh was a stockholder. 

In 1866 Mr. Burleigh opened an office in Whitehall, which was in 
charge of Chauncey B. Bates, and Mr. Burleigh divided his time 
between his Whitehall and Ticonderoga offices for some years, but 
finally settled in Whitehall and established his headquarters there, not 
only because of the natural advantages possessed by this place com- 
mercially, but because of the difficulty of traveling between Whitehall 
and Ticonderoga. 

After Mr. Burleigh settled in Whitehall he continued to extend his 
business operations, and every project which he undertook proved a 
success. He acquired large tracts of timber land on Lake George, 
which were largely supplemental to his lumber business, and in 1881 
the Whitehall Lumber Campany was incorporated, in which he owned 



202 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

a controlling interest. Later he bought out the other stockholders 
and became sole proprietor. . The company has extensive mills and 
yards in Whitehall. 

Mr. Burleigh was also largely interested in the Robert H. Cook 
Towing Company, of which he owned one-third, and of which his son, 
Charles R. Burleigh, has been for some time the president. This 
business, also, has been very prosperous, and is todaj^ the largest 
transportation company doing business on the Lake. They have two 
fine steamers, and a complete towing line established from St. Johns 
to Albany. 

H. G. Burleigh was President of the Old National Bank of White- 
hall for thirty years, and also President of the First National Bank of 
Ticonderoga for a considerable time. He was practically owner of 
the Old National Bank, and he held a controlling interest in the, First 
National Bank of Ticonderoga. He was also a director in the Albany 
City National Bank and the Commerce Insurance Company of Albany, 
besides being a stockholder in many other financial institutions. He 
was one of the promoters of the Internatihnal Paper Company, and 
one of its directors, and besides being a director of the Ticonderoga 
Pulp & Paper Company and St. Maurice Lumber Company, he held a 
controlling interest in at least a score of other corporations. 

He always had a fondness for real estate, and he owned many fine 
pieces of land in New York City, Vermont and Canada. 

In politics Mr. Burleigh was an uncompromising Republican, and 
had become prominently identified with that party before coming to 
Whitehall. He was Supervisor for the town of Ticonderoga for sev- 
eral years, and during the war was Chairman of the Board of Super- 
visors. Before coming to Whitehall he found the village strongl}' 
Democratic and set about to Republicanize it. He was nominated for 
Supervisor in 1874, but was defeated by W. F. Bascom, the Demo- 
cratic candidate. When the result was known, he simply remarked 
that if he lived long enough he would see Whitehall Republican, and 
he did. In 1875 he was nominated for the Assembly from the north- 
ern district of Washington County, and after a very hot contest, was 
elected by a plurality of 1167, carrying Whitehall by 275. 

Mr. Burleigh's record in the Assembl}^ was unusuallv conspicuous 
and important. He at once became a prominent figure and did his 
best for the promotion of legislation for better canals, and he succeeded 
in getting through every bill which he undertook, and none of them 



BIOGRAPHICAL 203 

was vetoed by the Governor. These bills, eleven in all, have been 
of vast benefit to the canals of the state. In 1882 Mr. Burleigh was 
elected to Congress from the Rensselaer County district. His career 
in Congress resulted in great benefit to his constituents. He suc- 
ceeded in securing the abolishment of the odious tonnage tax on 
northern frontier boats, and through him the ports of Lake Cham- 
plain were remembered in the river and harbor bill. He also carried 
through the Troy postoffice bill, in the face of opposition from the 
Speaker of the House. These are but a few of the many excellent 
results of his congressional career, for he was ever active and ever 
indefatigable in his efforts to further honest and needed legislation. 

He served two terms in Congress, from 1883 to 1886, and was a 
warm personal friend of President Arthur. 

Mr. Burleigh was always prominent in Washington County Conven- 
tions, which he generally succeeded in directing as he desired, and 
even in National Conventions he was a prominent factor. 

He was a friend of social organizations, and the Young Men's 
Christian Association of Whitehall is one of the institutions that has 
benefitted greatly by his generosity, for he presented them with the 
building and grounds which they occupy, and a stone tablet on the 
building memorizes him as the donor. What is known as Company 
" I," of the National Guard, was organized in 1876, under the name 
of the Burleigh Corps, and he treated it very liberally, and took much 
pride in its success. The Burleigh Hose Company is also named in 
his honor. 

Mr. Burleigh's parents were Gordon and Elizabeth (Weeks) Bur- 
leigh. Joseph Burleigh, grandfather of Henry G. Burleigh, was born 
in 1755, and served in the Revolutionary War with distinction against 
the British. He afterwards settled in Dorchester, N. H., and repre- 
sented that locality in the legislature for four terms. His son, Gordon 
Burleigh, born in 1795, was Hon. H. G. Burleigh's father, and was 
also a noted lumber merchant during the latter years of his life. 

In 1869 Hon. H. G. Burleigh married Jennie E. Richards, of Ticon- 
deroga. She died in 1899. Their children are Henry, Charles R. and 
James W. Burleigh. 



204 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Leonard Bibby. — This gentleman, who is one of the best known 
and most experienced brewers in the state, was born in England, 
February 6, 1854, but came to America with his parents when six 
years of age. He received his education in the schools of Glens Falls 
and early in life took up the brewing trade, to which he has given his 
undivided attention throughout his whole business career. 

His father, George Bibby, was also a brewer, and with him Leonard 
Bibby learned this business. He came to Fort Edward in 1889 and 
took the management of the Fort Edward Brewery for his company. 
Since that time both the capacity and ei^ciency of this brewery have 
been greatly augmented and the popularity of their products and the 
gratifying increase in their business is largely due to his able manage- 
ment and practical knowledge. 

Mr. Bibby is also a partner in the bottling firm of Bibby & Fergu- 
son, Glens Falls, N. Y., and his reputation as a business man is unim- 
peachable, his entire career being characterized by honorable 
dealing and strict integrity. He has been the architect of his own 
fortunes in the truest sense, having by his own industry, thrift and 
ability worked his way up from a poor boy to a distinctive place 
among the business men of the state. 

Leonard Bibby is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and in poli- 
tics is a Democrat through principle, but does not take any obtrusive 
position in political affairs. 

In 1878 Mr. Bibby married Miss Elma Kelly and they have two 
children, namely: Minnie Bibby and Walter Bibby. His parents were 
George and Mary (Hodson) Bibby. George Bibby died in 1899 and 
his wife, Mary Bibby, in 1891. 



Fred McNaughton was born in Schuylerville, Saratoga County, 
New York, September 27, 1853, and received his early education in 
the schools of his native place. He began the active business of life 
as a clerk in the National Bank of Schuylerville in the year 1870, 
rising to the position of teller, which position he occupied until 1879, 
when he went to New York City to take a position with David Dows 
& Company, grain merchants. He 'remained with them five years 
and in 1884 embarked in business for himself as a grain broker. After 
six years in this business he came to Fort Edward in 1890, and in the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 205 

fall of that year became a stock holder in the Fort Edward Brewing 
Company, of which he has since been the financial manager. 

Since becoming connected with the brewing industry Mr. 
McNaughton has made a scientific study of the business and took a 
course in the American Brewing Academy of Chicago, where the art 
of brewing is taught scientifically. He took his course there in the 
winter of 1898-99. 

Mr. McNaughton is regarded as one of the most enterprising busi- 
ness men of Fort Edward and takes an intelligent interest in the wel- 
fare and advancement of the village. He is a member of the Masonic 
fraternity and in politics a Republican. 

Mr. McNaughton married Julia, daughter of Alvinza L. Finne of 
Northumberland, Saratoga County, N. Y., and they have a family of 
three children, namely: Wallace Finne, Mary Emma and Leslie 
Malcolm. 

Mr. McNaughton's parents were Malcolm and Phoebe (McDouall) 
McNaughton. 



The Fort Edward Brewing Company. — The brewing interests of 
Washington County may fairly be said to be represented by the Fort 
Edward Brewing Company, and when the quality and purity of their 
products, the capacity and efficiency of their plant and the standing 
of the men who conduct this enterprise are all considered it will be 
admitted universally that the representative company of this impor- 
tant industry is an eminently worthy and creditable one. 

This business had its inception in about the year 1850, when the 
old brewery was built, but the present proprietors date their regime 
from 1890, when they purchased the plant and business from John R. 
Durkee & Company. 

Under the present management the plant has not only been 
enlarged but remodeled and equipped throughout with all the latest 
and most improved machinery and equipments in general, so that 
today it is one of the best appointed and cleanest breweries in the 
state, and has a capacity of 30,000 barrels output, while employment 
is given to a force of about twenty hands. 

The plant occupies an area of two acres of ground and its products 
are shipped all over the country, which fact attests the high quality 
of the ale and beer manufactured in this establishment. 



206 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Before the present company came into possession no lager beer was 
made in this brewery, but they have added on this department and 
with great success, as their enterprise justly deserves, for they have 
one of the most improved lager beer systems known to the history of 
brewing, namely: the Pfaudler Vacuum Fermentation system. This 
part of their plant consists of four 135 barrel glass enameled steel 
tanks and a 100 barrel glass enameled steel starting tank, each cask 
turning out in every seven days one hundred and ten barrels of 
thoroughly fermented beer, equal in every respect to beer of four 
months age, made by the old system. 

The company has also exhibited its enterprise in other ways. They 
were the first to introduce to the trade the LilendoU ale faucet, now 
celebrated, and also the Bay State Valve for lager tapping. 

This company is a member of the National Brewers' Academy and 
Consulting Bureaus of New York City, and it is only just to say that 
there is no beer produced in the United States superior to their pro- 
duct, "Sunshine Lager." They are also owners of the celebrated 
"Vita " Spring near Fort Edward, the waters of which rank with the 
best wells of Saratoga, and are unexcelled as a table water. 



James R. Brown was born in the town of Queensbury, Warren 
County, N. Y., in February, 1841, and was educated at Luzerne 
where he resided for fifteen years. After leaving Luzerne he went to 
Saratoga County, where he remained for eight years, when he came 
to Fort Edward and entered the employ of Bradley & Underwood, 
with whom he remained two years. He then engaged in boating on 
the canal on his own account, but after one season's work, he em- 
barked in the lumber business, in which he has since been engaged. 
In this enterprise he is associated with his brother, Joseph Brown, 
under the firm name of Brown Brothers. They buy timber land, 
manufacture lumber, deal in real estate and are also speculators. 

In 1872 James R. Brown married Louisa Hinkley of Hamilton 
County, N. Y. 

James R. Brown's parents were Moses and Electa (Herrick) Brown. 
His mother was born in Schroon. Warren County, N. Y., and his 
father w^as a native of Luzerne. His father was a settler in Dutchess 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 207 

County, but subsequently removed to Warren County and was one of 
the first settlers at Glens Falls. 

James R. Brown is an active, enterprising and progressive business 
man with the most honorable of records, and is one of the highly 
respected citizens of Fort Edward. 



S. J. Banker, M. D., was born at Plattsburgh, N. Y., October 26, 
1856, and received his preliminary education in the High School of 
his native place. He studied medicine in the University of Vermont 
from which he was graduated in the class of 1878. In the fall of the 
same year he took a post-graduate course in the University of the 
City of New York. He began the active practice of his profession at 
Burke, Franklin County, N. Y., where he remained five years, finally 
settling in Fort Edward in February, 1884. 

He is a member of the Washington County Medical Society and of 
the New York State Medical Society, also of the Masonic fraternity. 
Fort Edward Lodge No. 267, F. & A. M., of which he has been Mas- 
ter. 

Dr. Banker married Seba A. Ayer, and they have one son, Ernest 
E. Banker, who is taking a medical course at the Medical Department 
of Cornell in New York City, and who took the Cornell scholarship 
for Washington County. 

Dr. Banker's parents were John and Rebecca Taylor Banker. The 
family is of Dutch descent and was established in America before the 
Revolutionary War. Dr. Banker's great-grandfather was John Ban- 
ker, whose sister Lucretia married a Mr. Newcomb, and their son was 
the first male child born in Plattsburgh. The Banker family trace 
their history back to the William Borgardus side of the Anneke Janse. 
Her son was an ancestor of Mary Scott who married John Banker. 



Charles H. Broughton was born in Whitehall, Washington County, 
N. Y.,.July 16, 1857, and was educated in the Union School of his 
native place. His first business experience was in the drug store of 
his father, for whom he worked until 1879, when he became partner 
in the business, which then took the firm name of J. R. Broughton & 
Son. In 1887 James R. Broughton died, and Charles H. Broughton 
became sole owner of the drug business, which he continued until 1897. 



208 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In 1896 he became interested in the sale of a new fishing^ bait, for 
which he became the distributing agent for the United States. In 
1897 the P. & S. Ball* Bearing Bait Company was organized, in which 
C. H. Broughton is a stockholder, and is also the Business Manager. 
Their factory is located at Sayre, Pa., but their principal office is at 
Whitehall, N. Y. They do an extensive manufacturing business, their 
trade extending all over the United States and Canada. 

Mr. Broughton is also manager of the W. J. Boyd Pharmacy, which 
position he accepted in 1898. 

On October 12, 1880, Charles H. Broughton married Cora Anna, 
daughter of Chandler and Mary A. (Cleveland) Baldwin. To this 
union have been born three children, namely: James Chandler, born 
July 15, 1881, and died December 19, 1886; Marion Amelia, born July 
24, 1883, and Marshall Cleveland, born March 26, 1889, and died April 
23, 1892. 

C. H. Broughton's parents were James R. and Susan K. (Marshall) 
Broughton, both of whom were born in Poultney, Vt. His ancestors 
came from England. 

Mr. Broughton is a member of Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., 
and Whitehall Encampment No. 69, I. O. O. F. He enlisted in 1876 
in the Ninth Separate Company, known as the Burleigh Corps, N. G. 
N. Y., and served for eleven years. He is an active member of the 
Baptist Church, and has been clerk of that society for a number of 
years, and is a popular and successful business man. 



Silas B. Ambler is a son of Stephen and Lovica (Laraway) Ambler. 
Stephen Ambler was a native of Connecticut, but settled in Corinth, 
Saratoga County, when a young man, and there remained until his 
death in i860, at the age of eighty years. His wife was a native of 
Corinth, Saratoga County, and died in 1879, aged eighty-six years. 
She was a daughter of Philip Laraway, a native Frenchman, who 
came to this country as one of the body guard of General Lafayette, 
and served with him through the Revolutionary War. After the 
close of the war Philip Laraway settled in Vermont, where he lived 
to be an old man. 

Silas B. Ambler was born in the town of Corinth, Saratoga County, 
N. Y., February 14, 1839. He was reared on his father's farm, and 



BIOGRAPHICAL 209 

was educated at the district schools and the Fort Edward Institute. 

In i860 Mr. Ambler went to Glens Falls and took a position as sales- 
man in a clothing- house, where he remained three years, when he 
embarked in the same line of business for himself, in partnership with 
E. Gray, under the firm name of Gray & Ambler. This successful 
venture was brought to a close by the great fire at Glens Falls, in 
1864, which burned them out. In 1865 Mr. Ambler went to Wheel- 
ing, West Virginia, and engaged in the insurance business, and there 
was very successful. In 1867 he came to Sandy Hill and entered 
the employ of O. Richards & Son, prominent lumber merchants, and 
remained with them about fourteen yeai's. After leaving this firm 
he became one of the firm of Warren, Howe & Ambler, general mer- 
chants at Sandy Hill. This firm continued until 1890, and then Mr 
Ambler engaged in the general insurance business, which he conducted 
alone until August i, 1893, when the firm of Cross & Ambler was 
formed. This firm did a large general insurance business, but Mr. 
Ambler finally withdrew, and has since been extensively engaged in 
the insurance business on his own account. 

In January, 1867, Mr. Ambler married Martha R., daughter of 
Orson Richards. She died in May, 1870, and in 1874 Mr. Ambler 
married Julia A., daughter of J. F. Howe, of Sandy Hill. They had 
a family of five children, four of whom are living, namely: S. Frank, 
Julia, Lena M. and Ruth E. Another son, George W. V. Ambler, 
died in ]\Iarch, 1892. 

Mr. Ambler is a prominent Mason, a member of Lodge No. 372, F. 
& A. M., Sandy Hill Chapter No. 189, and Washington Commandery 
No. ;^^, K. T., Saratoga Springs. He has always taken an active inter- 
est in public affairs, and has held the office of Justice of the Peace, 
and for four years was a Trustee of the village of Sandy Hill. He 
has also been a member of the Board of Education, and is regarded as 
one of Sandy Hill's enterprising and progressive citizens. 



J. M. Barnett was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washington 
County. N. Y., June 23, 1826, and was the only son of Benjamin and 
Mary (Nicholson) Barnett. He was educated at the Troy Confer- 
ence Academy, and remained on his father's farm until twenty years 

[ a a J 



210 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

of age, when he went to the state of Michigan, where his father owned 
a lumber camp. Of this camp J. M. Barnett had charge for three 
years, his office being in Chicago. At the expiration of this period he 
came back to Fort Ann and engaged in the lumber and grain busi- 
ness, dealing largely in Canadian products, but having his headquar- 
ters in New York. He next engaged in the woolen business at Fort 
Ann, in which he continued about fifteen years, withdrawing there- 
from in 1893. He now confines his attention entirely to farming 
interests. 

On June 4, 1862, J. M. Barnett married Lucy, daughter of Volney 
and Mary (Barnett) Richmond. 



Clarissa Burch Hollister, was born in Cambridge, and in 1853, 
at the age of eighteen years, she married Sanford Scott, who died in 
1874. They had one son, Frank W. Scott, born March 17, 1863. He 
was educated in the district schools, and at the Troy Conference 
Academy. He followed farming until thirty years of age, when he 
embarked in the shoe and grocery business, which he still conducts 
on Main street, Granville. On January 12, 1888, Frank W. Scott 
married Lena Duel, daughter of Morgan and Eveline (Rasey) Duel, 
of Granville, and they have one son, Harold E. The Scott family 
traces its lineage back to General Walter Scott. 

Mrs. Clarissa Burch married, for her second husband, Horatio Hol- 
lister, who died in 1891, willing all his property to his wife. 

Mrs. Hollister owns a large farm, upon which are five developed 
slate quarries which she lets to Norton Brothers and Owen W. Owen's 
Sons, and there is any quantity of undeveloped slate quarries still 
upon her land. She also owns nine quarries in Pawlet, Vermont. 

Mrs. Hollister is a thorough business woman and developed these 
quarries herself. 

Her parents were Piatt Burch and Prudence (Burch) Burch. 
Prudence Burch was a daughter of Henry Burch. Piatt Burch lived 
to be an old man, dying in his eighty-second year. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 211 

Aaron B. Allen was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
County, N. Y., September i, 1864, and is a son of Ebenezer and Mary 
C. (Barker) Allen. He was educated in the district schools and at 
Marshall's Seminary, and after leaving school began the active duties 
of life as a clerk, in which capacity he worked until 1890, when he 
embarked in business on his own account at Barker's Grove, where he 
established a fine grocery business and general merchandise store, 
which he has since conducted successfully. 

On May 10, 1894, Aaron B. Allen married Lydia, daughter of Silas 
and Susan (Hunter) Stark. They have two children, namely: Susan 
and Howard. 

Mr. Allen is a Democrat in politics and takes a great interest in 
educational matters, and is one of the school trustees of his district. 
He was also Postmaster at Barker's Grove under Cleveland's last 
administration. 

He is prominent social-ly and is a member of Victor Lodge No. 680, 
F. & A. M. of Schaghticoke, Home Chapter No. 176, R. A. M., of 
Schuylerville, Bloss Council No. 14, R. & S. M., Troy, and Washing- 
ton Commandery No. 33, K. T., of Saratoga Springs. 

Mr. Allen's maternal grandfather, Aaron Barker, was a prominent 
man of his day, and Barker's Grove was named after him. 

He took an active part in public and political affairs, and was a 
member of the State Legislature. 



Samuel Berry was born in the City of New York January 20, 1858, 
and was the son of William F. and Herriott (Star) Berry. 

He was educated in New York City at Chlerier, and was engaged 
in the railroad business when a boy. Subsequently he was connected 
with the cotton trade until 1890, since which time he has been con- 
nected with the slate companies of Granville. 



Aaron C. Broughton. — The Broughton family is one of the oldest 
in America, its first representative, John Broughton, having settled 
in Connecticut in 1635. Ira Broughton, a direct descendant of his 
was born in 1797 and was the father of Aaron C. Broughton. 



212 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Rodney T. Ray was born in Rutland County, Vermont, December 
30, 1830, and came to the town of Hampton, Washington County, N. 
Y., about forty years ago. He is an extensive farmer and speculator, 
operating- four hundred acres of land in the town of Hampton and 
two hundred in Vermont. He is both a large dealer in and raiser of 
sheep. On April 5, i860, Rodney T. Ray married Lydia P. Stowe, 
daughter of Jacob and Lydia (Andrews) Stowe. They have two 
daughters, Isabel and Hattie E. Isabel married Dr. Edward Ellis 
and Hattie E. married John W. Thomas. 

Mr. Ray's parents were London and Electa (Jailett) Ray. 

Mr. Ray is a Republican in politics, has always been active in the 
support of his party and has served on important committees and 
been delegate to conventions. 

Mrs. Ray is a native of Mt. Holly, Vermont, but has resided in 
Hampton since ten years of age. 



S. W. Bassett was born in Cornwall, Vermont, December ir, 1858, 
and is the son of Louis and Agnes (Beardow) Bassett. He was edu- 
cated in the district schools, and was reared on his father's farm, 
where he remained until he was eighteen years of age, when he took 
a position in a hotel at Orwell, Vt. Here he remained for two years, 
and then went to Ticonderoga, N. Y. , and managed two hotels for T. 
E. Bailey for seven years. He then went to Troy and became a 
member of the firm of Dougrey & Bassett, who conducted the Everett 
House in Troy for three years. Mr. Bassett then accepted a position 
as paymaster for the state on Section i, of the Champlain Canal. 
This position he filled with ability for five years, and during that time 
was elected Colletor of Taxes for the town of Stillwater. In the fall 
of 1895 Mr. Bassett moved to Greenwich and became proprietor of 
the Greenwich House, which he has successfully conducted and has 
made it a first-class hotel in every respect. 

In 1892 Mr. Bassett married Lou Osgood, daughter of Horace and 
Catharine (Hill) Osgood, of Stillwater, N. Y. They have two chil- 
dren, Ralph O., born November 9, 1893, and Anna L., born July 
3, 1895- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 213 

Michael Brown was born in Granville, Washington County, N. 
Y., November i8, 1850, and received his education in the common 
schools of his native place. At the age of twelve years he began to 
learn the slate mantel business and continued it for eighteen years. 
He was a ver}' expert workman and was considered an artist in his 
line. After going out of the slate mantel business he went into the 
Jiorse business, buying, selling and matching horses. He next 
'.became a partner with G. H. Monroe, a furniture dealer and under- 
.taker, with whom he remained for three years. Subsequently he re- 
entered the horse business and also embarked in the livery business, 
which he still conducts. 

In 1871 Mr. Brown married Margaret McCoy, and they have one 
child living, namely: Elizabeth Brown. Mr. Brown's parents were 
Garry and Elizabeth (O'Brien) Brown, both natives of Cork, Ireland. 
Garry Brown came to America in 1840. 



Reuben Britton, Jr., was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
■County, N. Y., May 10, 1855. He is a son of Reuben and Elizabeth 
(Van Wee) Britton, and received his education at the district schools 
of his native town. 

He has always followed the occupation of farming and is a success- 
ful and highly respected business man and citizen. 

He is a Republican in politics and is a strong supporter of his party 
principles. 

In 1875 Reuben Britton, Jr., married Libbie Parker, who died, and 
for his second wife he married Carrie F. Hannaman, and they have 
three children, namely: Clarence, deceased, Francis R. and Edna. 



Elias H. Borden was born in the town of Easton, Washington 
County, N. Y., May 8, 1849, and was a son of Russell S. and Jane 
(Hoag) Borden. His early education was obtained in the district 
schools of his native town and the Marshall Seminary. 

His first business experience after leaving school was in surveying, 
which he followed for some time and then took up farming, in which 
he has since been engaged for the past thirty years. Besides farming 
Mr. Borden also carries on an insurance business. 

Mr. Borden takes an intelligent interest in all public affairs and has 



2U WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

taken quite an active part in politics, and was Assessor of the town of 
Easton for three years. 

Socially he has the happy faculty of making friends and is very 
popular with all who know him. 

On December 15, 1875, Elias H. Borden married Mary E. Gifford 
of Argyle. Their children are : Russell G. and Henry A. 



Charles L. Allen, son of Loren and Mary (Van Denburgh) Allen,, 
was born at Sandy Hill, Washington County, N. Y., January 31, 1867. 
He had splendid educational advantages, and after leaving the public 
schools, took a course in Colgate Academy and then at the military 
school at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. In 1888 he entered the office of Allen 
Brothers (now Allen Bros. Co.) as receiving clerk, and has since held 
that position. 

Mr. Allen is widely known, not only as a superior business man, 
but as a prominent Mason. He is a member of Sandy Hill Lodge, 
No. 372, F. & A. M., Sandy Hill Chapter, No. 189, R. A. M., Wash- 
ington Commandery, No. ^3^ K. T., Saratoga Springs, N. Y., and 
Oriental Temple Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, 
Troy, N. Y. 

On February i, 1893, Charles L. Allen married Jennie, daughter 
of A. C. and Electa (Qua) Fox. They have one son, Adelbert, born 
March 21, 1894. 



Raymond E. Brown was born in the village of Springfield, Brad- 
ford County, Pa., October 30, 1S65, and was educated at the Wood- 
hull Academy, Steuben County, N. Y., and at Alfred University, 
Alfred, N. Y., of which institution he is a graduate. He was a 
teacher in the faculty of this University for a year. He is also a 
graduate of the Albany Normal School and has been principal of the 
Granville High School for eight years. This school has made great 
progress under his regime, and the staff now comprises thirteen teach- 
ers in all, nine of whom are in the main building and four in the 
annex. 

On July 25, 1894, Raymond E. Brown married Lena M. Spence, 
daughter of Charlotte (Shepherd) Spence of Ithaca, N. Y. They 
have four children, namsly: Joseph Stanley, aged six years, Alfred 



BIOGRAPHICAL 215 

Allen, aged four years, Warren Spence, aged two j-ears, and Donald 
G. , aged four months. 

Professor Brown's father, Joseph B. Brown, was born in Springfield, 
Pennsylvania, and was a son of Benjamin and Didomia Brown, 
natives of New Hampshire. October ii, 1861, Captain Joseph Brown 
enlisted in Company E, Second Regiment, Berdan's U. S. Sharp- 
shooters, and served until July 11, 1865. October 11, 1861, he was 
promoted eighth Corporal, and in August, 1862, to Sergeant, and 
detailed to carry the colors until October, 1863, when he was promoted 
to Orderly Sergeant. January i, 1864, he was made First Lieutenant 
and appointed Adjutant of the regiment. October 26, 1864, he was 
promoted to Captain and served in that capacity until the close of the 
war. February 18, 1865, the regiment disbanded and was consoli- 
dated with the state troops, putting Captain Brown with the 105th 
Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He was in the following battles: 
Falmouth, Va. , Rappahannock, Va. , Gainesville, Va. , Bull Run, 
South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettys- 
burg, Wapping Heights, Kelly's Ford, Locust Grove, Mine Run, 
Spottsylvania, North Ann River, Petersburg and Weldon Road. He 
participated in the capture of the picket line at Jerusalem Plank 
Road, Boydton Plank Road, Raid on Weldon Railroad and Lee's 
Surrender. Captain Brown organized J. N. Warner Post No. 565, G. 
A. R. , of which he has been Commander ten years. 



W. Irving Bristol was born in the town of Fort Edward, January 
9, 1863, and was educated in the district schools and at the Argyle 
Academy. After leaving school Mr. Bristol went west and followed 
the occupation of clerk for two years in Nebraska. He then returned 
home and began farming on the old Crocker farm^, which was his 
grandfather's, and which ha? always been in the Crocker family. 

Mr. Bristol is a Republican in politics and is a prominent man in 
his town. 

He was Treasurer of the Washington County Agricultural Society 
for four 3'ears and is a member of the Fort Edward Lodge No 267, 
F. & A. M. 

W. Irving Bristol married Hattie C, daughter of Luther and 
Myerett (Ellis) Pike, and they have one son, Harold I. 

Mr. Bristol's parents were Alexander and Eliza J. (Crocker) Bristol. 



216 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

John Brayton •'vas born in the town of Hartford, Washington 
County, N. Y., June ii, 1840, and was educated in the district 
schools. He started in the jewelry business in 1858, in Whitehall, 
N. Y., where he remained two years, when he came to Hartford and 
followed farming until the breaking out of the War of the Rebellion. 
He enlisted in Company G, 44th New York, (Ellsworth People's Regi- 
ment) in 1861. He went to Virginia and was there detailed on special 
duty until 1862, when he returned to his regiment, and started for 
Richmond with General McClellan. He was in the advance guard 
and was at the* attack on Yorktown. He stayed there for four weeks, 
and participated in the battles of Hanover Court House, Gaines Mills, 
Va., and Savage Station, Va., where he was taken prisoner, June 29, 
1862. He escaped July 39, Sunday morning, and got back to the 
Union army and was sent to Chester, Pa. ; from there he was sent 
back to Alexandria, Va. , and to Mount Pleasant, on the sick list, and 
was honorably discharged in December, 1862. Subsequently he went 
to Baltimore and joined a government vessel, "The Maple Leaf," 
which was the flagsip when the Federals captured Jacksonville. He 
took temporary command, without orders, of a colored company at 
Jacksonville, and, with others, took Pulaski, Fla. He then rejoined 
his boat, which was subsequently blown up, just above Jacksonville, 
in the St. John's river, and five of the crew were killed. Afterwards 
he was sent to New York and paid off. He then came home, and 
remained home until July, when he went back and shipped on the 
government transport. Oriental. They transported a batch of pris- 
oners from Point Lookout, Md., to Mobile, and were fourteen days 
making the trip. He then returned to New York and was discharged. 
He then shipped on a coast line steamer from Boston to Havana and 
New Orleans, and remained with the company for three years. He 
then came to Hartford, and started in the ^jewelry business in 1869. 
In 1 87 3 he embarked in the hotel business in Hartford, and remained 
in it for twenty-six years, when he returned to the jewelry business, 
in which he is still engaged. 

^Ir. Brayton is a Republican in politics, has always been active in 
public affairs, and is a notary public. He was Town Clerk in 1872, 
and Collector of Taxes in 1878. He has been Secretary of the Hart- 
ford Cemetery Association since 1891. In 1873 he organized a Veteran 
Association, and later he was elected Lieutenant, and two years sub- 
sequently was elected Captain, which office he held as long as it 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 217 

lasted. He is now Commander of G. A. R. Post No. 453, and has 
held this position continuously since 1888, in which year the Post was 
organized. He was twice elected Colonel of Washington County Vet- 
eran Association. He is a member of the Masonic order, and was 
elected Marshal of Herschel Lodge, F. & A. M., and has held the 
office twelve years. He is also President of the Farmers Alliance, 
and is a member of the Farmers Grange. 

On May 14, 1872, John Bray ton married Arlesta Smith. His father 
was William Brayton, the inventor of the Silender ring for steam 
engines. His grandfather, Thomas Brayton, was of Scotch descent. 
His mother, Maria (Hoyt) Bi-ayton, was a daughter of Captain Hoyt, 
who was on General George Washington's staff. His mother's family 
are of English descent. 



Edward W. Cook, son of Philander and Wheatley (Benson) 
_Cook, was born in Orville, Rutland County, Vermont, July 29, 1831. 
His parents moved to Ticonderoga in 1841 where he was educated in 
the public schools. Later on he entered the employ of Potter Delano 
as clerk, where he remained four years. He then went to Crown 
Point for a year, after which he returned to Orville and engaged in 
farming. After two years he removed to Hartford, Washington 
County, where he remained seven years, after which he resided in 
West Haven for one year when he returned to Whitehall and remained 
six years. After again spending three years in West Haven he came 
to Whitehall and remained five years after which he removed to 
Hampton, Washington County and remained there ten years, after 
which he again went to Fair Haven, Vermont, remaining four years, 
then to Benson, Vermont, where he remained three years. Then he 
went to Fair Haven Village where he engaged in the meat business- 
two years. In 1890 he returned again to Whitehall where he has 
since been engaged in farming. On December 3, 1851, Mr. Cook 
married Electa J., daughter of John and Lucy (Gail) Stockwell of 
Hartford. They have had a family of ten children, namely: Mary, 
wife of E. H. Sutliff of Granville, Edna, (deceased). Ida, wife of 
Edward Loomis of Glens Falls, Charles, who married Elizabeth Rey- 
nolds of Granville, William E., who married Edith Mariams of 

[bbj 



218 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Whitehall, Electa, wife of Nathaniel Rooney of Fair Haven, John, 
who married Ida Stone of Middlebury, Vt., Herschel, who married 
Allie Mosley of Fair Haven, Lucy, wife of E. M. Heath of Sandy 
Hill, and Delos, who married Joseph Bartholomew of Arlington, Ver- 
mont. Mr. and Mrs. Cook have twenty-two grand-children and six 
great-grand-children. 



Lewis T. Barber was born in Bolton, Warren County, N. Y., Sep- 
tember I, i860, and is a son of John E. and Lucindia (Lane) Barber. 
He was educated in the district schools, and after leaving school at 
the age of eleven years, he began driving a team. He continued at 
this occupation, but as he grew to manhood, he became a team con- 
tractor, and was engaged in this line of business twenty years in all. 

On March i, 1896, Mr. Barber became connected in business with 
Monty, Higley & Company, and remained with that firm for over 
four years, and on August i, 1900, he and Mr. Higley formed a part- 
nership, the new firm being known as Higley & Barber. 

On November 13, 1883, Lewis T. Barber married Jennie M., daugh- 
ter of Will'ard H. and Louisa (Willard) Thompson. They have three 
children, namely: Lewis W., Ethel A. and James C. 

Mr. Barber has, by his own efforts, enterprise and honesty, worked 
himself up from the position of a poor boy to that of a prominent 
contractor and a highly respected business man. 



Joseph P. Crozier was born in the town of Argyle, Washington 
County, N. Y. , May 20, 1839. His parents removed to the town of 
Hebron, N. Y., when he was seven years of age, and there he 
received his education in the district schools and resided until twenty- 
five years of age. 

In February, 1866, he married Julia E., daughter of Nathaniel 
Munson, and they have five children, namely: James, George, Eliza- 
beth, Joseph and Maud. 

Mr. Crozier's father was James Crozier, who was born in the town 
of Argyle, N. Y., in 1806, and died March 27, 1890. His mother was 
Elizabeth (Lasher) Crozier. She was born in 1810 and died in 1894. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 219 

His grandfather was Alexander Crozier, who was born in Ireland 
and came to America, settling in Washington County, N. Y., in 1805, 
so that the Crozier family is among the oldest in the county. 

Joseph P. Crozier has followed the occupation of farming all his 
life and is one of the representative men of the town of Salem, N. Y. 

He is a Republican in politics and takes an active interest in politi- 
cal affairs as well as in the welfare and progress of his town and 
county generally. 



WiLLARD H. Cotton, D. D. S., was born in the town of Hartford, 
Washington County, N. Y., December 18, 1836, and is a son of 
Thomas and Clarissa (Pearce) Cotton. Being left an orphan while; 
quite young, Willard H. Cotton, in his early days, received only a 
common school education. 

At the age of thirteen he removed to Rensselaer County, and upon 
leaving school he took up the trade of making fanning mills and grain 
cradles. This trade he abandoned after a time, and took up that of 
carpenter and joiner, which, however, he soon relinquished and began 
the study of dentistry with his brother, Zina Cotton, of Salem. N. Y. 
In 1867 Dr. Zina Cotton removed to Cambridge, and Willard H. Cot- 
ton continued in practice for himself at Salem, and soon attained 
a standing of distinction in his profession, in which today he is one of 
the leaders in Washington County. 

Dr. Cotton is a veteran of the War of the Rebellion. He was one 
of the first to respond to the call for troops at the breaking out of the 
war, and enlisted on June i, 1861, as second leader of a regimental 
band in the Second Vermont Volunteers, with whom he served six 
months, when the band was discharged. On January 4, 1864, he 
again enlisted, this time in Company A, First New York Mounted 
Rifles, but shortly after his enlistment was detailed to regimental 
band duty. In this capacity he served with his regiment until it was. 
mustered out of service, December 5, 1865, at Albany, N. Y. 

Dr. Cotton is one of Salem's enterprising and progressive men, and 
is a director of the People's National Bank of Salem. He takes a warm 
interest in fraternal societies, and is a member of Lodge No. 391, F. 
& A. M., and of Federal Chapter No. 10, R. A. M. He is also a 
member of the A. L. McDougall Post, G. A. R., and in religious mat- 



220 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ters is associated with the Episcopal Church in Salem, of which he is 
a member. 

Thomas Cotton, Dr. Cotton's father, was a native of the town of 
Hartford, N. Y., and resided in that town during his entire life. He 
was a farmer and wheelwright, and in politics was a Whig, which was 
the patriotic party of his day. He served as a soldier in the War of 
1812, and died in 1844, at the age of fifty-one years. His wife, Clarissa 
Pearce, was a daughter of Daniel Pearce, who was one of the early 
settlers in Hartford, Washington County, and came from New 
England. 

Thomas and Clarissa Pearce had a family of six children, namely: 
Zina, deceased; PhoebaA., widow of Joseph M. Pratt, of Ludlow, Vt., 
where she resides; Norman E., deceased; Mary C, who married, 
first, Ira A. Perrin, and second, R. C. Ogers ; she is now a widow and 
resides in Sonora. Steuben County, N. Y. ; William H., who resides in 
Avoca, Steuben County, N. Y., and Dr. Willard H. Cotton, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

Thomas Cotton was the son of Silas Cotton, who came from Con- 
necticut to the town of Hartford, Washington County, N. Y. , with a 
colony from his part of the country, several years prior to the Revo- 
lutionary War. The progenitor and founder of the Cotton family in 
America was an Episcopal minister who came from England. 

Mrs. Clarissa Cotton was born in the town of Hartford, N. Y., in 
1798, and died in 1848. Her ancestors were also of English origin. 



Andrew J. Chase was born in the state of Vermont, July 12, 1850, 
and was educated in the district schools. His parents were Charles 
B. and Susan P. (Beebe) Chase. He worked on the farm with his 
father until eighteen years of age, after which he was engaged on 
public works until twenty-nine years of age. He next took up boat- 
ing, which he followed for seven years, and then located on the farm 
where he now resides. 

Mr. Chase is a Republican in politics and takes quite an active part 
in public affairs. He was Trustee of School District No. 13 for three 
years, and is a member of Home Lodge No. 398, F. & A. M. 

On September 10, 1879, Andrew J. Chase married Alice H. Brown, 
daughter of Jonathan and Betsey Elizabeth Brown. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 221 

George Bradley Culver was born January i6, 1836, at Sandy 
Hill, Washington County, N. Y. His parents were James and Kezia 
(Lee) Culver. He was educated in the schools of Sandy Hill and at 
Rev. Dr. Bostwick's private school, and then took up the study of 
law, which he began as a clerk in the office of Abram Wakeman in 
New York. Subsequently he took a course in the Poughkeepsie Law 
School and finally graduated from the Albany Law School in March, 
1856. He then entered the law office of Hughes 8c Northup at Sandy 
Hill, N. Y. 

In August, 1 86 1, Mr. Culver went out as First Lieutenant in Com- 
pany F, Forty-third New York Regiment, and served until July 16, 
1862, when he was mustered out on account of illness. His health 
was such that he could not be moved until October of the same year, 
and he then came north and secured a position in the New York Post 
Office, where Abram Wakeman was then Postmaster. Mrs. Wakeman 
is a cousin of George B. Culver. 

After leaving the Post Office, Mr. Culver was employed by the 
government in the Paymaster General's department of the army, 
doing clerical work. 

After leaving the war he was engaged as a speculator in the lumber 
business at Elizabeth, N. J. In 1871 he settled in Granville and 
accepted the position of Cashier in the North Granville National Bank 
where he has ever since remained. He has been a director in the 
bailk ever since he was elected Cashier, was Postmaster at North 
Granville for five years and was a trustee of the Ladies' Seminary and 
Military Academy at North Granville for twenty years. 

He is a prominent Mason, having passed to the degree of Knight 
Templar, and is a member of Washington Commandery, also a mem- 
ber of the New York Society of the Sons of the Revolution, and the 
New York Commandery of the Military Order Loyal Legion of the 
United States. 

In politics he is a Republican and in church matters is a member of 
the Episcopal Church of which he is also the treasurer. 

Mr. Culver's grandfather and great-grandfather were natives of 
Connecticut, and both were in the same regiment during the Revolu- 
tionary War. This was the celebrated Durkee Regiment in which 
his great-grandfather was a Sergeant. 

On December 23, 1869, George B. Culver married Lucy Comstock 



222 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Baker, daughter of Hon. I. V. Baker of Comstock's Landing, N. Y. 
They have one daughter, Laura Baker Culver. 

The North Granville National Bank was formerly the Farmers* 
National Bank of Fort Edward, and the change of location and name 
occurred in 187 1. Mr. Culver was the first cashier in the North 
Granville National Bank, and the first officers were Robert G. Dayton 
of North Granville, President, and John A. Russell of Fort Edward, 
Vice-President. The present officers of the bank are I. V. Baker, 
Jr., President; Charles K. Baker, Vice-President; George B. Culver, 
Cashier and John B. Davis, Teller. The capital stock is $85,000. 



John C. Clark, son of William and Esther (Whitney) Clark, was 
born in Pennsylvania, August 23, 1852, and came to Washington 
County when a year old. His parents settled in the town of Gran- 
ville, where they lived for eleven years, and then removed to the town 
of Whitehall, where he has since been engaged in farming. He married 
Fannie E., daughter of William G. and Mary S. (Douglass) Merriam, 
January 5, 1876. They have two children, namely: Emory M., born 
December 18, 1876, and Lavona L.. born August 3, 1878. Mr. Clark 
is a prominent farmer and highly respected in his town. 

Mrs. Clark traces her ancestry back to Henry Adams, who was born 
in England and came to this country in 1604. 

Henry Adams is believed- to have arrived in Boston, with his wife, 
eight sons and one daughter, in 1632, or 1633. He came from Brain- 
tree, County of Essex, England, and left there to escape the Dragon 
persecution. The direct line of descent from him down was Peter, 
Peter, John, John, Isaac, Isaac, Jeremiah, Isaac, Sophia, who married 
George Douglass. Their son, Hiram, married Margaret (Wood) Fal- 
kenbury. Their son, Erastus B. Doilglass, 'married Mary Murray. 
Their only child, Mary Soj^hia, married William Gridley Merriam, 
and Mrs. Clark is their daughter. 

On his mother's side, Mr. Clark traces his ancestr}' back to Sir 
Charles Stafford, Earl of Wentworth. His mother was Esther Lavona 
Whitmore, daughter of Berley and Marbury (Stafford) Whitmore. 
Marbury Stafford was a daughter of Stutley Stafford, who was the son 
of Thomas Stafford, a younger son of Lord Stafford, of Staffordshire, 
England. Lord Stafford was the son of the Earl of Wentworth. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 223 

John and Thomas Stafford, younger sons of Lord Stafford, came to 
America in their own ship and settled at Scituate, R. I. Thomas 
married Mercy Cleveland, who was of the family of Grover Cleve- 
land's ancestors. 



Brown Campbell was born in Ireland, and is the son of Alexander 
and Lettie (Brown) Campbell. He was educated in the schools of his 
native country and came to the United States when twenty-one years 
of age. His first occupation in this country was that of farmer, and 
he worked for other people for several years, and then bought the farm 
on which he now resides in the town of Jackson. 

Mr. Campbell married Susan Mulrick. He is a Republican in poli- 
tics, and is one of the prosperous farmers in the town of Jackson. 



Samuel W. Carr, Supsrintendent of the Postal Telegraph Com- 
pany at Whitehall is a son of Henry C. and Harriett (Moore) Carr 
and was born at Salisbury, August lo, 1841. After his school days 
he entered the employ of the Western Union Telegraph Company as 
a lineman and was subsequently made foreman, working for .the com- 
pany for a period of twenty-one years in all. 

In 1884 he accepted a position with the B. & O. Telegraph Com- 
pany as foreman where he remained two years when he removed to 
Albany and engaged in the livery business. After conducting the 
livery business for three years he sold out and removed to Whithall 
to accept the management of the Postal Telegraph Company, which 
position he still retains. 

In October, 1873, Mr. Carr married Martha, daughter of Harvey 
and Esther (Chapman) Buell. They have had five children, three of 
whom are living, namely: Mildred, (deceased), Elizabeth B., Millard, 
William, (deceased), and Boyd. 

Mr. Carr's parents were both natives of Vermont. His grand- 
father, Obediah Carr, came from England and settled in Whiting. 
Vermont, about the beginning of the nineteenth century. 



224 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Theodore D. Cross was born in the town of Kingsbury, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., September 2, 186 1, and received his early educa- 
tion in the Union School of Sandy Hill. He remained on his father's 
farm until 1886, when he went to Bradford, Penn., where he remained 
for three months, returning- to Sandy Hill in 1887, in which year he 
opened an insurance office, and has since been engaged in that busi- 
ness. In 1888 he formed a partnership with J. H. Durkee, under the 
firm name of Cross & Durkee, and they remained together until 
August I, 1893, when the firm became Cross & Ambler. This part- 
nership was dissolved in May, 1896, and Mr. Cross has since con- 
ducted the. business alone, dealing in both real estate and insurance, 
and reprsenting the following companies: Agricultural, of Water- 
town, N. Y. ; Continental, of New York; Glens Falls, of Glens Falls, 
N. Y. ; Greenwich, of New York; Hanover of New York; Hartford, 
of Hartford, Conn. ; Home, of New York; Lancashire, of Manchester, 
England; Liverpool, London and Globe, of England; North America, 
of Philadelphia; National, of Hartford, Conn.; Phoenix, of Hartford, 
Conn.; Queen, of America; Royal, of Liverpool, England; Sun, of 
London; Springfield, of Massachusetts; Westchester, of New York; 
Fidelity and Casualty, Accident, Emplyers' Liability, Steam Boiler, 
Plate Glass and Fidelity. 

Mr. Cross is an able, liberal minded and successful business man, 
and does a large and ever increasing business. 

On September 6, 1882, Theodore D. Cross married Jessie Z., 
daughter .of Orville and Janette Vaughn. They have three children, 
namely: Mabel J., Mary P., and Ida J. Mr. Cross is a member of 
Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M., of Sandy Hill Chapter No. 
189, R. A. M., of Washington Commandry No. ;^^, K. T., Saratoga 
Springs, and of the Oriental Temple A. A. O. N. M. S., at Troy, 
N. Y. 

Theodore D. Cross is a son of Stephen O. Cross, who took a very 
prominent part in the celebrated land claim of Daniel Jones, which at 
one time threatened the interests of a large number of the residents 
of Kingsbury. Jones was one of the early developers of the water 
power at Glens Falls, and owned considerable property in the town 
of Kingsbury and Oueensbury. During the Revolution he became a 
Tory and was obliged to take refuge in Canada. Subsequently his 
lands were confiscated for treason, and sold b_v the commissioners of 
forfeiture. After a time he fought to gain his lands, but the feeling 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 225 

against him was so strong that he returned to Canada. About the year 
1830 his son, Daniel, took up the matter, which dragged along for some 
years, without anything being done. He finally laid his case before 
Attorney-General Chatfield, claiming that his father's property had 
been unlawfully confiscated. Chatfield, after investigating the matter, 
reported to the Legislature that Jones' claim was valid, and recom- 
mended that the best settlement possible be made; but the Legisla- 
ture took no action. Then, in 1855, Jones began suits of ejectment 
against several of the occupants of the property, both in Kingsbury 
and Glens Falls. The Kingsbury defendants met at Vaughn's Cor- 
ners and commissioned Stephen O. Cross to proceed to Albany and 
ascertain whether the Legislature could be induced to compromise 
with Jones, and thus save litigation. The matter was referred to a 
committee, which reported adversely, so the case had to go to court. 
Mr. Cross then turned his attention to procuring evidence for the 
defense; he found that the Governor was required to appoint counsel 
and other necessary aid for the defense, and procured from the Gov- 
ernor the appointment of Hughes & Northup, as counsel for the 
defense. 

He also searched for and found, at Albany, a book showing that 
the lands had been sold to Captain John Pettit, but no date was 
entered. Jones' lawyers had previously sought in vain for this book. 
The whole question hung upon the date of the sale; if before the 
treaty, Jones' title was manifestly void; if after the treaty, his claim 
was good. 

To Mr. Cross belongs the whole credit for winning the case for the 
defense. One of his schoolmates was the grandson of Captain Pettit. 
Mr. Cross wrote to him in relation to his grandfather's papers and 
received a reply saying that they had just been barreled, to be sent to 
the paper mills, but would be held for the inspection of Mr. Cross. 

There were five barrels, and in the bottom of the last barrel 
inspected the deed was found, bearing date a few weeks prior to that 
of Jay's treaty. This settled the case in favor of the defense. 

Mr. Cross was a man of very positive convictions, always ready and 
able to defend his position, but always just and reasonable, willing to 
hear the other side of the question, and equally as ready to acknowl- 
edge his mistake, if he found he was in error. 

He was noted for his generosity, and had the happy faculty of 

[cc] 



226 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

placing himself in other people's position, so as to look at the case 
from their side, before forming a conclusion. 

He was Internal Revenue Collector during theWar of the Rebellion, 
and gave universal satisfaction to all parties. 



Robert Conaty was born in County Antrim, Ireland, July 17, 1837, 
and came to America with his parents in 1853. They came to Wash- 
ington County, where they settled and became farmers, which occu- 
pation Mr. Conaty himself has always followed. 

Robert Conaty married Mary J., daughter of Calvin and Sarah 
(Wright) Johnson, and they have one daughter, Grace Conaty. Mr. 
Conaty 's father was James Conaty and his mother Nancy (Sampson) 
Conaty. 

Mr. Conaty has always been a successful farmer and is a prosperous 
man. He has always taken an active interest in public affairs and 
politics, but has never aspired to public office himself, although he 
has held miner town offices. He is a Republican and is always found 
in line with his party. 

He and his family are members of the Presbyterian Church. 



C A. Cramer was born in the town of Granville, Washington 
County, N. Y., in the year 1858, and received a common school edu- 
cation in the village of Middle Granville and was a clerk in a store 
there for some time. He then went to Boston and resided in that 
city until 1878, then was stationed at Saratoga in the railroad business 
until 1 88 1, when he came to Fort Ann to accept the position of station 
agent on the D. & H. Railroad, which position he has held since that 
year. 

Mr. Cramer is an expert telegraph operator which is an aid to him 
in the discharge of his duties as station agent. 

In 1884 Mr. Cramer married Helen M. Coleman of Fort Ann Vil- 
lage and they have two children, Barbara E. and Lawrence S. 

Mr. Cramer's parents were Andrew F. and Elizabeth A. Cramer, 
both of whom were natives of Granville, N. Y. Mr. Cramer is a 
member of the Masonic fraternity, being a member of Mount Hope 
Lodge No. 260 F. & A. M., and Fort Edward Chapter No. 171. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 227 

Rev. James J. O'Brien. — St. Mary's Catholic Church of Sandy Hill, 
established in 1830, is one of the most prosperous, irrespective of 
denominations, in Washington County, and such a condition might 
naturally be expected since it is under the pastorate of the able, 
scholarly and beneficent pastor, the subject of this sketch. Rev. 
James J. O'Brien. 

Father O'Brien is a native of the City of Oswego, where he was 
born January 16, 1856. He was educated in the public schools of his 
native city and was graduated from the high school in the class of 1871, 
at the early age of fifteen years, and at the commencement exercises 
of his class delivered the Latin salutatory. He completed his collegiate 
course of study in the Niagara University, conducted by the Lazarist 
Fathers at Niagara Falls, N. Y., and in September, 1874, he entered 
St. Joseph's Seminary at Troy, N. Y. In this institution he pursued 
his philosophical and theological studies until 1879 when he was 
ordained priest by the Right Rev. Francis McNeirny, D. D., Bishop 
of Albany, and was assigned to the curacy of St. Mary's Church, 
Syracuse, N. Y. Here he was assistant to the late Rev. Dr. O'Hara 
for a term of three years. In 1882 he was selected by Bishop 
McNeirny for the new mission of Fonda and Tribes Hill, where he 
labored most assiduously and with great success for five years. In 
1887, leaving that parish free from debt, he was promoted to his 
present important church at Sandy Hill. His pastorate at Sandy Hill 
has been remarkably successful in every way; the debt on the 
church and parochial residence has been liquidated and in addition to 
that he has purchased and paid for a magnificent pipe organ for the 
church w^hich cost $3,400. But beyond all this he has undertaken the 
building of a grand new church to cost $50,000, and about $20,000 
has been already collected for this purpose, and a new stone edifice 
will, within a short time, adorn the village. 

He has also extended his aid to the Catholics of Fort Ann and to 
him they gratefully attribute the erection in that village of one of the 
most handsome and substantial country churches in the Albany 
diocese. This church, which was erected at a cost of $5,000, was 
completed and paid for within a period of two years, through the able 
management and advocacy of Father O'Brien. 

Father O'Brien combines within himself not only scholarly attain- 
ments and great force of character, but also is gifted with sparkling 
wit and a heart whose kindly charities make him popular with all 



228 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

with whom he comes in contact. A strong and cheery personality is 
the essence of his presence, which makes him welcome and desired in 
all classes of society. He is not only a zealous pastor and kindly 
father to his flock, a scholarly and magnetic speaker in the pulpit, 
but he is probably most noted as a church singer, possessing a rich 
baritone voice, whose services are in demand all over the state at all 
functions of the church. 

He is an ornament to the priesthood and there are few men either 
in the church or in the halls of Legislature who have a voice so capa- 
ble of influencing human hearts and minds. 

A recent historian has written of him: " Father O'Brien is popular 
with all classes, energetic and progressive in his work and devoted to 
his church. The success he has already achieved at this early period 
of his life and the esteem in which he is held by his congregation and 
by the public generally give assurance of the larger work yet remain- 
ing to be done by him for the greater glory of God. Since his coming 
to Sandy Hill he has labored and been active in the advancement of 
religion and civilization. He was the chief promoter and organizer 
of the Young Men's Catholic Union, Sandy Hill Council Knights of 
Columbus, the Young Ladies B. V. M. Society, the Holy Name 
Society for men. Catholic Mutual Benefit Association, Branch 120, and 
several juvenile societies." 

The annual field day of St. Mary's congregation attracts thousands 
of spectators, and demonstrates the genuine popularity and influence 
of this Catholic clergyman. 



George D. Cull was born in Whitehall, Washington County, N. 
Y., May 30, 1862, and at the age of sixteen years took the position of 
clerk for L. B. Manville, with whom he remained for three and one- 
half years, after which he went to Milton, Vermont, in the capacity 
of clerk for D. F. Quinn, a dry goods merchant, with whom he 
remained two years when he went to Burlington and took the position 
of shipper for Charles F. Hart, a fruit dealer. He remained in this 
position eight months and then returned to Whitehall where he 
worked for F. H. Gaylord for five years, after which he was shipper 
for the D. & H. Coal Company for one season. He next worked for 
Parks & Jilson for three years when he went to Port Henry and 
entered the employ of N. Bremen as clerk and remained eight 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 229 

months. He then went to Corinth, Saratoga County, and worked for 
Judson Dayton in a clothing- store for nine months, after which he 
again came to Whitehall and clerked for Manville & Skeele for three 
years. In 1894 he embarked in business for himself in the grocery 
line which he conducted for one year when he was appointed clerk in 
the Canal Collector's office. This position he held two years, when 
he was appointed Inspector, which office he still holds. 

On the 14th of July, 1892, Mr. Cull married Lillian W., only daugh- 
ter of John and Emeline (Gero) Davy. 

Mr. Cull's parents were John and Sarah C. (Carrington) Cull. 

John Cull was a commercial traveler for George F. Bassett, a glass 
ware mxcrchant, for twenty-nine years. He was born in the north of 
Ireland, but came to Benson, Vermont, when two years of age, and 
Whitehall about the year 1840, and was engaged in the hardware and 
tinning business until 1857. He died the 226. of December, 1888. 

George D. Cull is an ardent and active Republican and held the 
office of Town Clerk from 1894 to 1897 inclusive, and was Village 
Clerk for the year 1886. He is a member of Phoenix Lodge No. 96, 
F. & A. M., and has been a member of the Whitehall Steamer Com- 
pany No. 3 for the last eighteen years. 



Colonel Luke H. Carrington. — The subject of this sketch was 
born November i, 1840, and spent his boyhood days at home on the 
farm, and in attending the public schools. While still a youth he 
went south and was employed on the Memphis & Ohio Railroad until 
1 86 1, when he returned home, because of the war, and with patriotic 
ardor enlisted in Company C, 123d New York Volunteers. He was 
mustered in as a private, but after the battle of Chancellorsville was 
promoted to Second Lieutenant for gallantry in the face of the 
enemy, and at the close of the war was breveted First Lieutenant. 
He was mustered out of the service in July, 1865, but subsequently 
was a member of the Washington County Veteran Association, in 
connection with which he received his commission of Colon-el. He 
was also in the National Guard for ten years. From 1865 until 1869 
he was in New York City, on the Sixth Avenue Railway. 

From 1 87 1 until 1874 Colonel Carrington was a member of the firm 
of Baker, Paterson & Co., dealers in boots and shoes; and in 1874 



230 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

succeeded the firm, and was sole proprietor until 1879. From 1879 to 
1891 he was associated with John Earl, since which time he has 
been alone. 

For a third of a century Colonel Carrington has been intimately 
associated with the business and public life of Whitehall, and is a 
prominent factor in the life of this historic place. August 24, 1899, 
was unquestionably the greatest day in the history of Whitehall, for 
upon that date was held not only a reunion of the veterans of Wash- 
ington County, but the Soldiers and Sailors Monument was dedicated. 
Colonel Carrington took a very active part in bringing about the 
reunion of the veterans upon this date, and also in promoting the 
patriotic project of erecting a monument to the nation's dead heroes, 
and it was through his energy and executive ability that the ceremo- 
nies and all the details of this memorable day were carried through 
to such a grand success, and the public spirit and deep interest which 
he exhibited in preparing for and carrying through the fete of August 
24, 1899, are indications of the public spirit which Colonel Carrington 
evinces in all laudable public movements and undertakings. 

As might be expected, from his honorable war record, Colonel Car- 
rington is an enthusiastic G. A. R. man, and is a member of A. H. 
Tanner Post No. 563, G. A. R. He is also a prominent Mason, a 
member of Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M. ; Champlain Chapter 
No. 25, R. A. M. ; Washington Council, and Washington Commandery 
No. S3^ of Saratoga Springs. In 1899 he was a delegate to the 
National Encampment, G. A. R., held in Chicago. 

In politics Colonel Carrington is a Democrat, and yet he has held 
several offices in this notably Republican County, which fact is a strong 
indication of his popularity and the great public confidence reposed 
in him. He has been Deputy Collector of Customs for four years; 
Inspector on the Canal for three years, and Overseer of the Poor for 
a term of three years. 

On June 12, 1873, Colonel Carrington married Jane Ann Frost, a 
native of Charleston, S. C, and a neice of Commodore Perry. They 
have three children, namely: Stella, Lucile, and an adopted daughter, 
Jennie Stroupe. 

Colonel Carrington's parents were John and Polly (Barrett) Carring- 
ton. Polly Barrett's mother was twice married. Her first husband 
was Leeme Bartholomew, who was captured by the Indians in 1776, 
in what was then called Skenesboroueh, but is now Whitehall. Her 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 231 

second husband was Roger Barrett, Colonel Carrington's grandfather. 
An incident in the life of this lady will give a clear idea of the 
troubles and dangers to which the early pioneers in Washington County 
were subjected. Mr. Bartholomev/ was on his way to Skenesborough. 
riding horseback, with a woman on a pillion behind him. He had 
reached a ravine on the Poultney road, when he was fired upon by 
ambushed Indians and wounded in the leg. He slipped from the 
horse, gave the woman the reins and told her to fly for her life, which 
she did, urging the horse into a mad gallop, and escaped. Mr. Bar- 
tholomew was taken prisoner, made to walk to Canada on the ice, and 
draw a sled, with a number of squaws. He was imprisoned at Sorrel, 
but finally escaped and returned to Skenesborough, where he found 
his wife cooking supper for her father. He was so changed, however, 
from hardship and his long imprisonment, that she did not at first 
recognize him. He afterwards met his death by falling on a pitch- 
fork while unloading hay, and his wife subsequently married Roger 
Barrett. 

It is unquestionably a just dispensation of Providence that Colonel 
Carrington should occupy a prominent place in Washington County, 
in which his ancestors were notable pioneers. 



Edward H. Conklin was born in the town of Greenwich, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., October 8, 1848, and is a son of David and 
Martha (Eggleston) Conklin. 

After leaving school he engaged in the occupation of farming and 
sheep raising, which has been his life business, and in which he has 
been uniformly successful. 

On February 5, 1873, Edward H. Conklin married Sarah C. 
Brownell, and they have one son, Edward Conklin, born February 
18, 1887. 

Mr. Conklin is one of the largest farmers in the town of Easton, 
and has a fine farm of 237 acres. In 1899 he built upon this farm one 
of the largest stables in the town of Easton. 

He is enterprising and progressive in every way, and is a highly 
respected citizen. 



232 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Henry C. Clements is a native of the village of Fort Ann, in 
which he is today one of the representative business men. He was 
born June 6, 1844, and was educated at Clinton Liberal Institute, 
Clinton, N. Y., and at Eastman's Business College, Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y. 

Mr. Clements first started in business thirty-five years ago, in 
1865, when he established a general store in the village of Fort Ann, 
which he has since conducted in the original building occupied at 
that time. 

In 1891 Mr. Clements married Harmie Miller, daughter of William 
H. and Ellen (Baker) Miller, and they have two children, Nellie and 
Isaac, aged seven and four years, respectively. Mr. Clements' parents 
were Isaac and Hannah Ette (Copeland) Clements, both of whom 
were born in the town of Fort Ann. 

Mr. Clements has probably been in business continuously longer 
than any other man in the town of Fort Ann. 



Clayton F. Dean is a native of Washington County, N. Y., and 
was born July 20, 1859. He was educated in the South Hartford 
Academy, from which he was graduated in 1879, since which time he 
has pursued the occupation of farming. On January 20, 1880, Mr. 
Dean married Mary A. Straight, of the town of Hartf6rd, and they 
have one son, C. Fayette Dean. 

Mr. Dean's parents were James H. and Jeanette (McDonald) Dean. 
Mrs. Dean's parents were John and Sarah J. (Barden) Straight. 

Clayton F. Dean is one of the representative men of the town of 
Hartford. He is a director in the South Hartford Cheese Factory, 
and is a member of the Baptist Church at Hartford, and takes a deep 
interest in educational matters. 



Seth Devine, son of. Abel and Hannah (Losee) Devine, was born 
at Pleasant Valley. Dutchess County, N. Y., February 26, i8ig. He 
has always been a farmer and came to Washington County and settled 
in 1849. 

He married Margaret Griffen, daughter of Bartholomew and Maria 
(Sweet) Griffen, in November, 1848. They have five children living, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 233 

namely: William G., Hannah, who is the wife of Charles Langdon; 
George S., INIaria, and Elizabeth, who is the wife of George M. Mead. 
One son, Charles, is deceased. Margaret G. Devine died in January, 
1878. In 1880 Mr. Devine married Louise M. Harris, his second wife, 
who died in April, 1899. 

Mr. Devine's long life has been one of industry, honor and fair 
dealing with his fellow men, and now, in his eighty-second year, he 
is as hale, hearty and active as most men of fifty. 



Henry Coulter, a well known farmer of the town of Jackson, 
Washington County, N. Y., was born in this town January 10, 1863. 
He was a farmer's son and has followed that occupation himself. He 
takes an active interest in local affairs and has held the important 
offices of School Trustee and Town Collector. 

On March 12, 1890, Henry Coulter married Nancie W. Robinson, 
daughter of James W. and Catherine (Rice) Robinson. They have 
four children, namely: Margaret, Catherine, Sarah Blanche and 
Florence. 

Mr. Coulter's parents were James A. and Janet (Alexander) Coul- 
ter. The ancestors of the Coulter family were of Irish descent on his. 
father's side, and on his mother's side of Scotch lineage. 



Clarence Copeland was born in the town of Fort Ann, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., April 23, 1853, and was educated in the public 
schools. He has always followed farming and lumbering, and is one 
of the prosperous men of his town. 

In 1877 Mr. Copeland married Miss Adele Vaughn. They have 
three children, na'mely: Beulah, Carlos and Clyde. 

Mr. Copeland's parents were Carlos and Harriet Copeland. Mr. 
Copeland's father was a native of New York and his mother of Still- 
water, N. Y. Mr. Copeland has always lived in the house in which he 
was born. 

[dd] 



234 ■ WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

G. Gordon Durrin was born at Shushan, N. Y., March 14, 1877, 
and received his education at the Hoosick Falls High School. After 
leaving school he took up and learned the trade of machinist with his 
brother, Arden L. Durrin, and remained with him for a year, after 
which he was with C. F. Crosby, a shirt manufacturer, for a short 
time. He next entered the employ of L. C. Piser, shirt manufacturer, 
as a machinist, with whom he is still connected, and has charge of the 
electric plant, in connection with the shirt manufacturing business. 

On March 18, 1895, George G. Durrin married Bertha, daughter 
of Alvin and Emily VanGuilder. They have a family of two children, 
namely: Ethel and Vera. 

George G. Durrin is a son of Arden and Elizabeth (McClellan) 
Durrin. Arden Durrin was a native of Connecticut, and his wife is 
of Scotch descent. 



Marcus T. C. Day is one of the oldest native residents of South 
Granville now living. He was born February 23, 1821, and received 
his education in Poultney, Vt. He has followed the pursuits of farm- 
ing and speculating all his life. In 1877 he purchased a residence in 
Granville, to which he then moved and still resides there. 

Politically Mr. Day is a Republican, and has served as County 
Superintendent of the Poor for six years, and Assessor six years. 
For more than forty-five years he was chorister in the South Granville 
Congregational Church, and he was for many years one of the Board 
of Managers of the Washington County Agricultural Society. He 
also filled the position of Secretary and Treasurer of the Union Dairy- 
men's Board of Trade of New York State, and has been for years, and 
now is, a director in the Granville National Bank, and is the only 
original director of that bank living. For eighteen years he was 
President, Treasurer and salesman of the Granville Cheese Manufac- 
turing Company No. 5, at South Granville. He has been President 
of the Granville Co-operative Fire Insurance Company since its organ- 
ization in 1888. 

Mr. Day is first cousin of Judge Luther Day, of Ravenna, Ohio, 
and second cousin of William R. Day, one of the Hague Peace Com- 
missioners under McKinley's administration. 

Mr. Day's parents were Noah and Susan (Wilson) Day. His grand- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 235 

father, Captain Noah Day, Sr., was a native of Killingsley, Conn. He 
was a Revolutionary soldier of distinction in the militia. 

M. T. C. Day was married December 21, 1843, to Elizabeth B. 
Potter, daughter of Stacy Potter, of South Granville, N. Y., who is 
still living-. They have one daughter, Mrs. Willard Whitney, of South 
Granville. She has a son, Marcus Day Whitney, who is a graduate 
of Middlebur}'- College, and is now a resident of Granville, N. Y. , and 
a member of the firm of Rivenburgh & Whitney, in the clothing 
business. 



Charles W. Dean, the popular and efficient Chief of Police for the 
village of Fort Edward, was born in Greenwich, Washington County,. 
May 28, 1854, and received his education at the district schools. His 
father was a cabinet maker by trade, and having gone into the paper 
manufacturing business Charles W. Dean spent some time working 
in this line, but finally took up and learned the trade of painting, 
which has been his life's business. In 1873 he entered a sash, door 
and blind factory and remained a short time, but since then has 
devoted himself to painting and paper hanging. 

In 1856 Mr. Dean left Greenwich and settled in Fort Edward„ 
where he has since resided, excepting a few years spent in Glens 
Falls. His father died in Glens Falls, and since that time, he has 
been permanently identified with the village of Fort Edward. 

In 1877 Charles W. Dean married Christie Gilbert, who died in 
1885, leaving three children, namely: Lorenzo Coleman, Jennie Cor- 
nelia and Mattie Christie Dean. 

In 1887 Mr. Dean married, for his second wife, Maggie Coon. 

For the past fifteen years Mr. Dean has taken a very active part in 
the public affairs of Fort Edward as well as of Washington County. 
He was elected police officer of Fort Edward in 1896, under a special 
act of the Legislature, after having been Constable for about seven 
years, and in 1898 he was appointed Deputy Sheriff for a term of three 
years. 

He is a prominent Mason, being a member of Fort Edward Lodge 
No. 267, of Fort Edward Chapter No. 171, R. A. M., and of Washing- 
ton Commandery No. :^S' K. T., Saratoga Springs, N. Y. He is also 
a member of the Fort Edward Club and has held several positions of 
trust. He has been connected with the Fire Department since 1877 



236 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

and is one of the oldest active members in the Department today. 
He is Chief Engineer of the Fire Department, and twice previously 
held the same position, in 1894 and 1896. He is also a member of the 
Durkee Hose Company. 

Charles W. Dean's parents were Lorenzo and Jane Cornelia Dean, 
both of whom were natives of Vermont. His grandfather, William 
Dean, was also born in Vermont. The family is of Scotch-Irish 
descent, but has lived several generations in this country. 

Not only in his official capacity, but in all his relations with men, 
business and public affairs. Chief Dean has maintained a high reputa- 
tion for ability, integrity and honor. 



D. Cameron Easton was born in the town of Putnam, Washington 
Count3^, N. Y., September 24, 1848. He was reared on the farm, 
educated in the public schools, and has followed the occupation of 
farming all his life. 

In 1873 D. Camicron Easton married Elizabeth Price of Liberty- 
ville. 111., and they have one son, D. Paul Easton. 

Mr. Easton's parents were David and Janette (Williamson) Easton. 
Mr. Easton's brother, Theodore S. Easton, served in the War of the 
Rebellion with the Fifth New York Regiment, which was in com- 
mand of Colonel Hammond of Crown Point, and was taken prisoner 
and died in Andersonville prison. 

Mr. Easton's grandparents, on his father's side, were born in this 
country and were of old Puritan stock. His grandparents on his 
mother's side came from Scotland and landed in America on July 4, 
1803. 

D. Cameron Easton is one of the prominent men of Washington 
County and has represented Putnam on the Board of Supervisors for 
seven years. He is at present Justice of the Peace and has held the 
office for several years past. 



Charles Frake was born in the city of Newark, N. J., November 
24, 1850. He was educated at the Rev. J. B. Day's College, Bridge- 
port, Conn., and at Bryant, Stratton & Corbin's Business College in the 
same state. He was associated with the firm of William Campbell & 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 237 

Co., wall paper manufacturers, New York City, from 1874 until 1895, 
when he came to Sandy Hill, since which time he has been connected 
with the Standard Wall Paper Maniifacturing Company of this place. 

Mr. Frake is a prominent Mason, being- a member of the Sandy Hill 
Lodge, No. 372, F. & A. M., Sandy Hill Chapter, No. 189, R. A. M., 
Washington Coramandery, No. 33, K. T., Saratoga Springs, and the 
Oriental Temple Mystic Shrine, Troy, N. Y. He also takes an active 
interest in public affairs, and has served as Trustee of the village of 
Sandy Hill for two years. 

On July 6, 1875, Charles A. Frake was married to Ella M. Gaunt 
by Rev. Henry Ward Beecher. They have two children, namely: 
Clifford Harrison Frake, born May 24, 1878, and Edith M. Frake, 
born November 6, 1883. 

Mr. Frake's parents were Abraham and Rebecca Frake. 



S.A.MUEL L. Finch was born in the village of vSandy Hill, Washing- 
ton County, N. Y., August 21, 1859, and is a son of Edwin and Har- 
riet (Cooper) Finch. He received his early education in the Union 
Schools of Sandy Hill and then engaged in the ice business and truck- 
ing, which he continued for twelve years, when the firm of Clark & 
Finch was formed, which still exists, and carries on the same business. 
They also do a general trucking- business in stone and are furnishing 
the stone for the new Town Hall at Glens Falls, N. Y. 

On March 10, 1880, Mr. Finch married Julia, daughter of Orson 
and Julia (Fiske) Richards. 



George A. Ferris was born at Sandy Hill, Washington County, N. 
Y., March 26, 1856. After receiving a liberal public school education 
he was employed as a clerk for three years, when he re-entered 
school, and after completing his studies became a teacher for some 
time. In 1876 he entered the services of Allen Brothers, (now Allen 
Brothers Company) as bookkeeper, which position he still holds. As 
a side issue, during the years 1886 to 1894, he managed the summer 
hotel known as Horicon Lodge, located at Ripley's Point, Lake 
George. 



238 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Ferris is widely known as a fraternity man. He is a member 
of Sandy Hill Lodge, No. 372, F. & A. M., Sandy Hill Chapter, No. 
189, R. A. M., Cryptic Council, No. 37, R. & S. M., Saratoga Springs, 
Washington Commandery, No. ;^;^, K. T., Saratoga Springs, Albany 
Sovereign Consistory A. & A. S. R., Albany, and Oriental Temple 
A. A. O. N. M. S., Troy, N. Y. He was Master of Sandy Hill Lodge 
in 1897, and High Priest of Sandy Hill Chapter in 1900. He has been 
Treasurer of his lodge for three years, and was Assistant Grand Lec- 
turer in 1897-98, and District Deputy Grand Master for the Twentieth 
District, State of New York, for two terms, 1898-99, 1899-1900. He 
is also a member of the Royal Arcanum. 

On August 10, 1 88 1, George A. Ferris married Harriet E. Scher- 
merhorn, daughter of John and Julia (Reynolds) Scherraerhorn. 
They have two children, namely: Evelyn, born July 23, 1882, and 
George 3., born March 22, 1890. 

Mr. Ferris' parents were Lyman R. and Minerva A. (Miller) 
Ferris. 



Walter Galbreath. — The subject of this sketch has by hard work, 
ceaseless energy, enterprise and strict integrity, taken a leading place 
among the manufacturers of the thriving village of Cambridge. He 
was born in Newburgh, Orange County, N. Y. , in 1849, and did not 
have an)^ large educational advantages, enjoying only three or four 
years attendance at a district school. * 

While but a youth he learned the trades of blacksmith and wheel- 
right, and after being employed in several city shops, he came to 
Cambridge in 1869, where he worked with Lewis Miller and after- 
wards with Thomas Livingston, with whom he remained seven years. 

In 1879 Mr. Galbreath embarked in business for himself in the old 
steatii mill building where he had done business for years. In 1884 
he completed his present commodious shops, where for the past six- 
teen years he has carried on a large trade. Besides manufacturing 
carriages, buggies and heavy wagons, he is a jobber in all kinds of 
vehicles. His carriage, painting and trimming departments are 
models. He also deals extensively in cord wood, both as buyer and 
seller. Mr. Galbreath takes an active interest in all public affairs 
and is a prominent factor in both the business and public life of Cam- 
bridge. He has been a Trustee of the village for eight years and has 



BIOGRAPHICAL 239 

been a delegate to many county conventions. He is a member of the 
Knights of Columbus, and has been Treasurer of the Larmon Hose 
Company since its organization in 1887 He has also been connected 
with the Cambridge Fire Department for over twenty-five years. 

In 1872 Mn Galbreath married Jane Cavanaugh, and they have a 
family of five children, William J.. Catherine G., Harriet A., Walter 
J. and Frances A. The eldest son, William J. Galbreath, is his 
father's bookkeeper and confidential clerk. 

Walter Galbreath's parents were James and Harriet (McMillen) 
Galbreath. They were Scotch people and came to America from 
Glasgow in 1845. 



John Graham was born in the town of Putnam, Washington 
County, N. Y. , April 12, 1844, and was educated in the common 
schools and the Academy of Putnam, N. Y. 

He is a farmer by occupation, and in business a general agent for 
all kinds of dairy goods, farm implements, road tnachines and horse 
powers and engines. He is an Elder in the Presbyterian Church and 
is one of the best known men in his town. 

In February, 1869, John Graham married Helen J. Easton, and 
they have a family of four children, namely: Richard B., Winella, 
Arthur and Edgar. 

John Graham is a son of John and Susan (French) Graham. The 
ancestors of the family on both sides were Scotch. 



Walter Fraser. — The subject of this sketch, son of David and 
Elizabeth Fraser, was born in the town of Hebron, Washington 
County, N. Y., September 30, 1848. His early training was meagre, 
and confined to the district schools of his native place, and the town 
of Salem. 

Mr. Fraser has always been engaged in farming, but in addition to 
this, he has for some years carried on an extensive grocery trade, 
carrying a general line of groceries, and doing considerable business 
all over his part of the town. He also deals to some extent in pota- 
toes, buying and shipping to outside points. 

On May 20, 1867, Walter Fraser Married Mary Mitchell. They 
have one son, Charles W., born February 13, 187 1. 



240 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Charles W. Fraser married Martha Maynard, daughter of Dr. May- 
nard. She died and subsequently he married, for his second wife, 
Hannah Evans, and they have two children, one of whom, Hulda M., 
lives with her grandfather, the subject of this sketch. 

The Fraser family has been identified with this country during its 
entire history as a nation. Walter Fraser's grandfather was a soldier 
in the War of 1812, and his great grandfather was a patriot soldier in 
the Revolutionary War. ' The family is of English descent. 

Walter Fraser is one of the best known and most highly popular 
citizens of the town of Salem, and has been Assessor for the long 
period of twenty-one years. The duties of Assessor are more arduous 
than those of any other town office, as the incumbent is brought 
directly in contact with every property holder in a matter relating to 
his personal interests. Such, however, is Mr. Fraser's good judgment 
and accurate knowledge of property values that he has, for the long 
term of years mentioned, discharged the duties of his responsible 
office with the highest degree of satisfaction to all. He is a thorough 
business man, and does all his business on a strictly cash basis, and 
this, in connection with his honorable methods and square dealings, 
have made him a prominent business factor throughout his town. 



Mrs. M. B. Hewitt. — Few families in this country have a more 
honorable, patriotic and distinguished history than that of Mrs. 
Minerva Brownell Hewitt, of Cambridge, N. Y., and New York City. 
Mrs. Hewitt's maiden name was Minerva Brownell Harrell. 

Born and educated in Cambridge, she married in 1866 Edgar A. 
Hewitt, of New London, Conn., editor and proprietor of the Insur- 
ance Chronicle, a trade journal of New York City, and other publica- 
tions. Mr. Hewitt died in 1S77. 

Mrs. Hewitt still retains his interest in the business, residing in 
New York during the winter and spending her summers in Cambridge. 

William J. Harrell, her father, was born in Schaghticoke, N.Y., and 
when young was Colonel of the Rensselaer Militia. He enlisted in 
the 2 2d New York Volunteers, Company D, and served with credit 
through the war, at the close of which he returned to private life. 
He was a brave soldier and a good officer. 

Mrs. Hewitt's paternal grandmother was Mehitable Masters, of 



ll 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 241 

Schaghticoke, N. Y., daughter of Jiidge Masters of the Supreme 
Court, and for many years United States Senator, Her paternal 
great grandfather was Jacob Harrell, who owned a plantation on 
which now stands the flourishing city of Charleston, S. C. He was a 
very wealthy man of his time. Mrs. Hewitt's mother was a daughter 
of Daniel Brownell, whose father was Simeon Brownell, a Quaker 
preacher, who built and established several meeting houses in the 
vicinty of Cambridge. The maternal grandmother of Mrs. Hewitt 
was Esther Miller, who married the Daniel Brownell above men- 
tioned, Martha Miller, of Revolutionary fame, being her mother. 
Martha Miller was a daughter of Colonel Elisha Miller, who, when 
but fourteen years of age, carried dispatches from White Plains 
through the British lines, when the Britons occupied Manhattan 
Island. George Washington, who then had his official headquarters 
at White Plains, at the Miller home, himself wrote the dispatches and 
delivered them into the hands of the brave girl. The result of the 
safe delivery of three of these dispatches was a joint action by the 
American troops, and the evacuation of the Island by the British. 
Mrs. Hewitt has now in her possession the table on which Washington 
wrote the dispatches; also Colonel Elijah Miller's sword, a pitcher 
presented by George Washington to Martha Miller, after he became 
President of the United States, which was loaned to the Metropolitan 
Museum for years. On this pitcher is a likeness of Washington. 

Martha Miller was also Senator Warner Miller's grandmother. 
Martha Miller married, at the age of fifteen years, William Miller, 
who removed the records to Newburgh, before the town of White 
Plains was sacked. 



Arthur F. Glines was born in 1857, in the town of Hebron, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y. , and was educated in the district schools and 
the West Hebron Academy. He spent the first six years after he left 
school in farming at Hebron after which he went to Boston and became 
a clerk in a grocery store. He soon bought out a grocery store in 
Chelsea, which he conducted for about a year. After selling this gro- 
cery store he moved to Severly, Mass., and went into the shoe factory 
of A. Perry & Co., in the capacity of cutter, where he remained more 

[ee] 



242 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

than three years. Upon leaving- Severly he returned to Hebron and 
resumed farming. In 1855 he bought the large farm, which he still 
owns, on the Salem and Hebron turnpike, two miles south of Hebron. 
Shortly after his return he became interested in speculating in live 
stock and other farm products, and in 1893 his time was so largely 
taken up with these matters that he leased the farm, and moving into 
the village of Salem, devoted himself undividedly to the buying and 
selling of potatoes, apples, hides and onions, which he ships in large 
quantities to New York City, Boston, and the great markets of New 
England. 

Mr. Glines is the son of Dr. T. J. and Caroline (Clement) Glines, of 
Hebron. He was married in 1884 to Miss Alice Burke, and has one 
daughter, Maud Clement, who was born May 6, 1890. Mr. Glines' 
paternal grandfather was a resident of Eaton, N. H. His maternal 
grandfather was Daniel Clement of Hebron. 



Patrick Daly was born at Smith's Basin, Washington County, N. 
Y., October 12, 1857, and was educated in the district schools of his 
native town. His parents were Bryant and Mary (McGinnis) Daly. 
Mr. Daly has always been a farmer, and every fall makes a large ship- 
ment of potatoes to New York City. 

On February 23, 1881, Patrick B. Daly married Isabella, daughter 
of William and Elizabeth (Parker) Henry, and they have two sons 
and two daughters. 

Mr. Daly is a member of the Knights of Columbus and of the 
Catholic Church. 



Charles W. Harding was born at Sandy Creek, Oswego County, 
N. Y., and was educated at the common schools and Oneida Seminary. 
He came to Whitehall and began the active business of life as a clerk. 
He was in the employ of H. R. Wait for fourteen years, since which 
time he has been in business for himself as a member of the firm of 
Harding, Bascom & Co. This house, which he organized in 1886, is 
one of the representative business houses in the county. 

Mr. Harding has always been an ardent Republican and is at 
present Postmaster at Whitehall, the appointment to which he 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 243 

received in March, 1899. He is a member of both the Masonic Order 
and the Odd Fellows; Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M., Whitehall 
Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., and also of the Encampment and Canton. 

In 1878 Mr. Harding married Kate L. Boyd, daughter of the late 
John H. Boyd, and they have one daughter, Elizabeth B. .Harding. 
Mr. Harding's parents were G. W. and Emily (Woodruff) Harding. 

Mr. Harding's brother, W. A. Harding, who is a resident of Oak- 
land, Neb., served throughout the War of the Rebellion in the 
Twentv-fourth New York Reofiment. 



Thomas O'Donnell was born in the town of Jackson, Washington 
County, N. Y., January 7, 1857, and was educated in the district 
schools of his native town, and after leaving school he worked on a 
farm for five years, and then purchased the farm on which he now 
resides. On January 16, 1897, Thomas O'Donnell married Bridget, 
daughter of Timothy and Mary (O'Brien) Higgins. Mr. O'Donnell's 
ancestors were natives of Ireland, who immigrated to America and 
settled in the town of Jackson. His parents were James and Bridget 
O'Donnell. 



Captain James Hill, son of Peter and Mary (McCauley) Hill, 
was born on the farm where he now resides in the town of Jackson, 
Washington County, N. Y., June 5, 1838. As a boy he attended the 
district schools and subsequently took a course in the Cambridge 
Academy. 

When he was twenty-three years of age the Civil War broke out 
and during the next year in August, 1862, he enlisted and was com- 
missioned First Lieutenant in Company G, 123d New York Volunteer 
Infantry. Subsequently he was commissioned Captain and served 
with that rank until the close of the war. 

In September, 1866, Captain James Hill married Julia B., daughter 
of Ira C. and Julia (Brown) Stevens. They have four children^ 
namely: Charles P., Caroline, James P. and Margaret. 

Captain Hill is one of the most enterprising and prominent men in 
his part of Washington County and takes an active interest in all 
puVjlic affairs. In politics he is a Republican and is a staunch sup- 



244 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

porter of his party. He was Supervisor of the town of Jackson for 
two years, and is a director of the Cambridg-e Elgin Butter Factory 
and a Trustee in the County Association. He is a member of John 
McKie Post, No. 309, G. A. R., and of the Presbyterian Church. 

Captain Hill was mainly instrumental in having the old cemetery 
at Cambridge improved when it was in bad condition, and he was a 
Trustee of the Cemetery Association. 

The Hill family has been an American one since before the Revolu- 
tion, and Captain Hill had an uncle who served in the Revolutionary 
War and rose to the rank of Captain. 



George Henry was born in Scotland, November 13, 1851, and was 
a son of William and Elizabeth (Parker) Henry who immigrated to 
America when he was two years old. Mr. Henry has followed the 
occupation of farming all his life. 

On September i, 1880, he married Ella Breason, daughter of John 
and Esther (Hill) Breason. 

Mr. Henry is a Republican in politics and has been Commissioner 
of Highways in his town. 



Sherman F. Harlow was born July 15, 1852, and has followed the 
pursuit of farming all his life, with the exception of three years, when 
he was engaged in the slate business. 

On December 9, 1872, he married Betsey L., daughter of Amos and 
Sarah (Spalding) Barber, and they have one child living, Elbert R. 
Two other children, William O. and Adeline, are deceased. Mr. 
Harlow takes a lively interest in public affairs, especially in the cause 
of education, and has held the office of school trustee. His grand- 
father was Justice of the Peace for a number of years. 

Mr. Harlow's parents were Isaac and Antaly (Felton) Harlow. 
Isaac Harlow was born in Whitehall, July 10, 1823, and died August 
12, 1897. His mother was born in Whiting, Vermont, May 2, 1828. 
and died June 3, 1896. His grandfather, Ransom Harlow, was born 
December 20, 1780, and died February 27, 1855. His grandmother, 
Annis Martin Harlow, was born March 30, 1785, and died June 28, 



BIOGRAPHICAL 245 

1 86 1. His great grandfather's name was Isaac Harlow. He was an 
early settler, and his son, Ransom, had a farm set off from his estate. 
Ransom Harlow and Annis, his wife, had twelve children, nine of 
whom grew to m.aturity. They were George C, Caroline C, Lucy 
M., Lathrop B., Adaline, Judson R., John M., Isaac and Mary. 

George, Judson and Isaac were permanent residents of the town of 
Whitehall. George had a son who became Mayor of Kansas City, 
Kansas. 

Judson R. married Weltha Goodrich, March 28, 1844. They had 
four children: Rollin J. and Elbert E., both of Michigan; Fred S., of 
Saratoga, and Edgar S., who died at the close of his Theological Col- 
lege Course. Judson R. was first engaged in incrcantile business, 
but subsequently became a farmer. He died March 31, 1896. 

Isaac Harlow married Antaly Felton, of Whiting, Vt.. November 
26, 1850, and shortly afterward bought the old Lyman Porter farm, 
adjoining the old homestead. They had two children, Sherman F. 
and Charles R. The latter died at the age of nine years. In the 
spring of 1862 Isaac Harlow sold out his other farms, bought out the 
heirs of the old homestead, and moved thereon. There he lived until 
his death, August 12, 1887. His wife remained with her son until her 
death, June 3, 1896. Lathrop B. married Lily Manville, of Whitehall, 
February 9, 1834, and removed west. They had two sons and one 
daughter. Caroline C. married Hill Hollister, of Pawlet, Vt. They 
five sons and one daughter. Mrs. Hollister died March 26, 1882. Ada- 
line marriedPhilo Manville May i, 1833, but he died shortly thereafter 
and she married Elon Clark. She died January 9, 1890. Lucy M. mar- 
ried a Mr. Carver, of Pawlet, Vt., and died October 10, 1847, leaving 
one son, E. M. Carver, who was reared by his grandparents and became 
a banker. John M., born November 25, 1819, educated himself for a 
physician, and became eminent in his profession, once curing a man 
who had a drill blown through his head while working on a railroad 
at Cavendish, Vt. He is, at present, practising in Woburn, Mass. 
His second wife was Fanny Kimball. Mary Harlow never married, 
but cared for her parents until they died, and subsequently made the 
old home her home. She died October 5, 1864. Sherman F. Harlow, 
owner and occupant of the Harlow farm, is of the third generation 
that has owned the homestead. 

Ransom Harlow's family was very religious, all belonging to the 
Baptist denomination, except Dr. John Harlow. Ransom Harlow 



246 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

was Deacon of the old Baptist Church, where the Advent religion 
originated, and was known as Deacon Harlow. Isaac Harlow was 
Deacon of the First Baptist Church, at Fair Haven, Vt., and its 
chorister for some years. Politically they were all Republicans, and, 
with one exception, voted for Lincoln when he first ran for president. 



Clifford W. Higley, one of the best known and most prominent 
contractors of Washington County, N. Y., was born at Bennington, 
Vt., October 9, 1869. He received a liberal education at the Benning- 
ton High School, the Sandy Hill High School and the Glens Falls 
Academy. He settled in Sandy Hill in 1884, and in 1887 became 
bookkeeper for the Drake-Stratton Company, who were operating 
bluestone quarries at Sandy Hill, and after serving some time as 
bookkeeper, he became Superintendent of this company. 

On March i, 1896, Mr. Higley formed the company of Monty, 
Higley & Co., who at once became prominent as building contractors, 
making a specialty in the line of heavy masonry. They also dealt 
extensively in the retail coal and wood business. This partnership 
continued until August i, 1900, when it was dissolved, and Mr. Higley 
formed a partnership with Lewis T. Barber, establishing the firm of 
Higley & Barber, contractors, which is today one of the strongest con- 
tracting firms in this part of the state. 

Mr. Higley is not only an enterprising and highly capable business 
man, but also takes an intelligent interest in public affairs, and is at 
present a member of the Board of Education at Sandy Hill, and hold- 
ing office for the second term. 

Clifford W. Higley married Alice McCarty, daughter of Major 
James McCarty, of Sandy Hill, N. Y. They have two children, 
namely Mary, born March 10, 1898, and John, born December 5, 1899. 

Mr. Higley's mother was Mary Johnstone, of Hartford, N. Y. 



Anthony Thomas Hughes was born in Canada, near the city of 
Melbourne, in 1862, and is a son of John T. and Anna (Evans) 
Hughes, both of whom were natives of Wales, and both of whom are 
still living, at the ages of eighty-two and seventy-six, respectively. 

John T. Hughes came from Wales forty-six years ago, located at 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 247 

Granville, and then went to Salem and developed a slate quarry. 
When the civil war broke out, he went to Canada, where he remained 
until 1867, when he returned and settled at Middle Granville, N. Y. 

Anthony T. Hughes was at this time five years of age, and he 
received his education at the Union Free School of Middle Granville, 
after which he worked on the farm for a couple of years, and then in 
the quarries. 

In 1880 he embarked in the mercantile business with his father, and 
opened a store in Middle Granville, which they still conduct. 

Mr. Hughes has been for years, and is still, connected with the 
great slate interests of Washington County. He was formerly inter- 
ested in the new Boston Red Slate Company, and was Secretary of 
that Company when it was dissolved. He was also Secretar}'' of the 
National Red Slate Company, which sold out to the Matthews Slate 
Company. He is also a stockholder in the New Foundland Slate 
Company, which has a capital of $500,000. This Company has a 
remarkably valuable quarry, which produces green and purple slate. 
The slate vein is in Brittania Cove, Trinity Bay, New Foundland, and 
right close to the ocean, which makes shipments very convenient. 
Mr. Hughes is also agent for the Fife estate, which has a number of 
quarries upon it. 

Although a very active business man, Mr. Hughes has found time 
to give attention to public affairs. He is a Republican in politics and 
was Town Clerk for four years, namely: 1883-4-5-6, and has been del- 
egate to Republican County conventions several times. He is one of 
the Trustees of the Union Free School at Middle Granville, and is a 
stockholder in the Granville Telephone Company. 

On January 8, 1892. Anthony T. Hughes married Phoebe Davis, 
daughter of Griffith and Jane Davis, and they have a family of two 
sons, namely: John Wesley and Griffith Rodman. 



Martin D. Hubbard was born in the town of Salem. Washington 
County, N. Y., in September, 181 4, and was not able to benefit by the 
scant educational advantages of the early days of the century, owing 
to his having to assist his father in lumber work. 

After leaving home he worked on a farm in Washingtan County 
for a few years, and then went to Hartford, Conn., where he entered 



248 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

the employ of a Mr. Goodrich, an extensive general merchant of that 
place. Here he remained as a salesman for a number of years, and 
about 1844 Mr. Goodrich, having great confidence both in his business 
ability and integrity, sent him to Cambridge to buy wool. Mr. Hub- 
bard liked this section of the country so well that he concluded to 
make it his home, and subsequently embarked in business for himself 
in the village of Cambridge. In 1853 he erected a storehouse and 
engaged in buying and selling grain of all kinds, wool, pork and lum- 
ber, and built up one of the most extensive business enterprises in the 
county. He branched out into the lumber business, and conducted it 
and his general mercantile business concurrently until 1874, when he 
gave up his mercantile interests, and turned his attention mostly to 
his lumber business, in which he was engaged during the remainder 
of his career. 

Mr. Hubbard was twice married. On May 10, 1S47, he married 
Sophia B., daughter of Thomas Rice, of Cambridge, N. Y. She died 
November 2, 1849, and on October ig, 1853, Mr. Hubbard married 
her elder sister, Mary N. Rice, who is still living in Cambridge. 

Thomas Rice, father of Mrs. Hubbard, was born at Willington, 
Conn., and was one of the early settlers of the town of White Creek, 
Washington County, where he was brought with his parents when 
only six months old. He followed the occupation of farming all his 
life, and owned a fine farm of two hundred acres of land. He married 
Selina, daughter of Ebenezer Billings, of the town of Jackson, N. Y. 
They had four children, namely: Mary N., Sophia Billings, George 
and Henry Rice. 

Thomas Rice was born July 27, 1795, and died February 8, 1859. 
His father was Roswell Rice, who settled in the town of White Creek, 
in 1797. He married Mary Nye, March 22, 1792, and they had one 
son, Thomas Rice, the father of Mrs. Hubbard. The Rice family 
trace their ancestrj^ back to the landing of the Mayflower. 

Martin D. Hubbard's parents were Jonathan and Ellis (Archer) 
Hubbard. The Hubbards were one of the pioneer families of Wash- 
ington County. Dr. John Hubbard, grandfather of Martin D. Hub- 
bard, was a native of the village of Shushan, in the town of Salem, 
and his residence antedates Revolutionary days by many years. 
Jonathan Hubbard was born in the town of Salem, January 2, 1784, 
and followed the occupations of farmer and lumberman, carrying on 
an extensive business for that day. He was a member of the Demo- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. -JiO 

cratic party, and saw service in the War of iSi::. He died July 9. 
1S70, and his wife. Ellis (Archer) Hubbard, died April 15. 1S64. She 
was born March 17, 17S6. 

Martin D. Hubbard died August 13. 1SS4. He was both a self- 
educated and self-made man. and it has been said of him that during 
his life he was as much identified with the industrial department of the 
village of Cambridge, and its moral and religious progress, as probablv 
any other man. He was certainly one of Cambridge's most public 
spirited and useful citizens, and the impress which he left upon the 
business, public and social life of Cambridge, not only remains todav. 
but is destined to be lasting. He is forgotten by none who knew him. 
and his memory is revered by many. He was alwavs ready to help 
any worthy public enterprise, and was chosen President of the Cam- 
bridge Valley National Bank, which position he filled with ability for 
a number of years. 

In religious matters he was associated with the Presbyterian Church, 
of which he was an official member, and in the life and advancement 
of which he was a prominent factor. 

At the death of Martin D. Hubbard his large business interests 
came directly under the management of his wife. Mrs. Mary N. 
Hubbard, who has shown herself in every way competent and worthy 
of the charge. She is an intelligent, educated and capable woman, 
and believing in the emancipation of women, is an active participant 
on behalf the Women's Suffrage movement. She is a member of the 
Equality Club, of Cambridge, and has long acted as one of the Equality 
executives. She was a delegate to the convention held in Brooklyn, 
in November, 1S93, and was also a delegate to the National Conven- 
tion held at "Washington, D. C. February 15. 1S94. 



Christophkr HiNRV was born in the town of Kingsbury. Washing- 
ton County. N. Y., December 25, 1S63, and was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of his native town. After leaving school he took up the 
occupation of farming on his own account, on the farm where he 
now resides. 

In November, 1S83, Mr. Hcnrv married Emma Brcason, daughter 
of John and Esther (Hill) Breason. 

Mr. Henry's parents were William and Eli/.abeth Parker Henry. 

[ff] 



250 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Rev. Frederick H. T. Horsefield is a native of New- York City, 
and was born July 8, 1852. His father, Israel Horsefield, was a 
prominent and skillful physician and surgeon, and his mother, Maria 
(Keeler) Horsefield, also of New York City, was a member of one of 
the oldest and best families of Manhattan Island. The subject of this 
sketch, as a boy, attended private schools in New York, and in the 
fall of 1867 entered upon a preparatory course at St. Stephen's Col- 
lege, Annandale-on-the-Hudson, from which institution he was grad- 
uated in 1873. The same year he entered the General Theological 
Seminary in New York City, from which he was graduated with 
honors in the class of 1876. In 1878 Mr. Horsefield became rector of 
Christ Church, Suffern, N. Y., and after a successful ministry there, 
was chosen rector of Christ Church, Hyde Park, Mass. In 1880 he 
accepted the call from St. Luke's Church, Cambridge, where he has 
ministered for twenty years. 

Mr. Horsefield's great grandfather, Frederick Keeler, on his mother's 
side, came to this country from Holland, in 1750, and settled on Man- 
hattan Island. He was a staunch patriot, and his house was always 
open to the soldiers of the Revolution. He was a personal friend of 
George Washington, and entertained the " Father of his Country " on 
frequent occasions. His home w^as then on Old Harlem Lane, New 
York City. 

Since Rev. Mr. Horsefield has been the rector of St. Luke's Church, 
at Cambridge, many improvements have been made in the church. 
The building has been practically reconstructed and refurnished, and 
a vestry and a chancel have been added. A new rectory was built in 
1896, and the general affairs of the church are in a healthy condition. 

In 1883 Mr. Horsefield married Marianne Moneypenny, of Cam- 
bridge, N. Y., the cultured and accomplished daughter of John 
Moneypenny, M. D. They have three children living, namely: Mar- 
garet, Mona and Basil Horsefield. 



LeRov T. Hatch was born at Hartford, Washington County, N. 
Y., April II, 1850. After receiving a public school education he 
learned the trade of tanner with his father, who owned a tannery 
in Hartford, N. Y., and in 1872 succeeded his father in the business. 
In 1889 he settled in Sandy Hill, N. Y. , and established a shoe store, 
which business he is successfully conducting. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 251 

Mr. Hatch is a prominent Mason, being a member of Herschel 
Lodge No. 508, F. & A, M., of Hartford, N. Y. ; Sandy Hill Chapter 
No. 189, R. A. M. ; Cryptic Council No. 37, R. & S. M. ; Washington 
Commandery No. 33, K. T., of Saratoga Springs; also. Crown Star 
Chapter No. 143. 

On January i, 1874, LeRoy T. Hatch married Phoebe E., daughter 
of John and Martha (Gilchrist) Wellwood. They have two children, 
Bessie E. and Grace E. 

Mr. Hatch's parents were Levi and Olive (Townson) Hatch. Levi 
Hatch was born in Granville, N. Y., February 3, 1809, and died June 
3, 1898. He was the son of Lewis Hatch, whose father was a whaler, 
sailing from Massachusetts ports. Olive (Townson) Hatch was born 
in Hartford, N. Y., February 19, 1815, and died April 8, 1901. 



J. H. KiNCAiD was born in the town of Hartford, Washington 
County, August i, 1836, and was educated at the Fort Edward Insti- 
tute. When twenty-one years of age he went to California, where he 
remained three years, working in the gold mines. He returned home- 
in 1859 ^"d went south, where he remained until the breaking out of 
the War of the Rebellion, when he came north and enlisted in May,, 
1 86 1. He enlisted with the first recruits that went to the war from 
the town of Granville, in May, 1861, and who joined the 2 2d Regi- 
ment, New York Volunteers, and he afterwards joined Company F,, 
93d Regiment, New York State Volunteers. John S. Crocker was. 
Colonel of this regiment and Captain George B. Moshier was Captain 
of Mr. Kincaid's company. He went to Washington with his command,, 
but owing to an attack of measles returned home in 1862, and settled 
in North Granville. Here he embarked in the drug business, which he 
conducted for several years, and also for some length of time he has 
been interested in the manufacture of cider and cheese. He owns a 
cheese factor}'' himself, which he rents. 

Mr. Kincaid is Justice of the Peace, and when he has completed his 
present term, will have served twelve years in all. He was deputy 
sheriff in 1883, under a Democratic regime. He is both a member of 
the Masonic fraternity and the Odd Fellows. 

On July 27, 1864, J. H. Kincaid married Marcella R. Wyman,, of 
Cavendish, Vermont, who died July 7, 1899. 



252 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Kincaid's ancestors settled in Washington County as early as 
1790. A family of three brothers, Scotch-Irish, came from Ireland, 
one of whom was James Kincaid, whose son, John Kincaid, was the 
father of the subject of this sketch. John Kincaid married Abigail 
Wheeler, the mother of John H. Kincaid, and she has resided with 
him since the death of his wife in 1899. 

Regarding her the Granville Sentinel recently said: "Abigail 
Wheeler Kincaid reached her ninety-fourth mark on the reel of life 
Sunday, March 11. She was born in Shaftsbury, Vt. Her ancestors 
were of the old Continental stock of Rhode Island. Her grandmother 
was a Pitcher, and General Andrew Pitcher was a brother of her 
grandmother She is stopping with her son, J. H. Kincaid, at North 
Granville. She formerly lived there, her present home being at 
North Pownal, Vt., with her daughter, Mrs. M. Whipple. Mrs. Kin- 
caid is active and is busy with her needlework, and discusses the 
general news of the day, and is fond of reading the newspapers, and 
is a 'dyed-in-the-wool ' Democrat. She has complimentar}' letters 
from Mrs. Cleveland and family, and others. She calls herself an 
*01d Jacksonian.' She takes the Sentinel, and is interested in the 
people and town of Granville, of which she will be remembered 
by many." 

In 1855, in the town of Hartford, J. H. Kincaid killed three black 
bears. In early days they were quite common, but none have been 
seen for forty-five years. Prior to this time an old patriot named 
Ezekiel Goodell had many a thrilling adventure with them in the west 
part of the town, and his game stories were very entertaining. 



James D. Keating was born in the village of South Glens Falls, 
Saratoga County, N. Y., May 10, 1863, and was educated in the public 
schools of his native place. At the age of eighteen he entered the 
employ of the Glens Falls Times, where he learned the several 
branches of the printing trade. He remained with that well known 
newspaper for several years, and later he was successively connected 
with the Washington County Advertiser, the Gloversville Intelli- 
gencer, the Albany Telegram and the Sandy Hill Herald. 

In September, 1895, Mr. Keating formed a partnership with George 
P. Barnard, and they established a printing office in Fort Edward, 



BIOGRAPHICAL 253 

conducting the business under the firm name of Keating & Barnard. 
This partnership subsisted until October 21, 1899, when Mr. Keating 
purchased his partner's interest, and has since conducted the busi- 
ness alone. 

This house has published several well known publications, among 
them, " Captain Ichabod Norton's Orderly Book," a historical work of 
rare value. 

In 1886 Mr. Keating married Sarah Wicks, of Fort Edward, and 
they have one son, Albert J. Keating. 



John Legus Hunt, one of the most enterprising and genial young 
men of Cambridge Washington County, N. Y., was born and reared 
upon the farm. He attended the district schools for a time, after 
which he entered the Cambridge Washington Academy, and after- 
wards took a course in Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y. After graduating from the Business College, he taught school 
for a short time and in 1885 entered the office of the Jerome B. Rice 
Seed Company, where he has since remained and has proved himself 
a competent and valued factor in the carrying on of that extensive 
enterprise. He is corresponding clerk for the company and is an 
expert in his department. 

Mr. Hunt's father, John Legus Hunt, was a farmer residing about 
two miles southwest of Cambridge Village. He was Supervisor of 
the town of Cambridge during the Civil War and performed the 
arduous duties of his office at that critical period with much distinc- 
tion. 

On June 30, 1887, John Legus Hunt married Jennie Beattie, daugh- 
ter of James H. Beattie of Atlanta, Ga., and they have three children, 
namely: Pearl B., Walter S. and John Legus. 

James Galloway, a great-grandfather of Mr. Hunt on his mother's 
side, was a Revolutionary soldier. 



F. O. Ives was born in Lansingburgh, N. Y., January 23, 1837. 
His parents were Oscar F., and Mary D. Hoag. His ancestors on 
both sides were originally English, but his mother's people resided in 
Rhode Island for some generations. 

F. O. Ives was educated in the district schools, at the North Gran- 



254 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ville Academy and the Troy Conference Academy of Poultney, Vt. 
After leaving- school he engaged in farming which he has made his. 
life's occupation, and was for some time connected with the Farmer's 
Institute. He is a life member of the New York State Agricultural 
Society and of the Masonic fraternity, of Cambridge Lodge No. 487, 
F. & A. M. In politics he is a Democrat. 

On December 23, 1862, F. O. Ives married Susanna Gifford, daugh- 
ter of Elihu and Hannah (Robinson) Gifford. They have two child- 
ren, namely: Paul, born December 11, 1868, and Blanche, born Jan- 
uary 18, 1872. 

Mr. Ives' great-grandfather, Pelton, fought in the Revolutionary 
War and was at the battle of Saratoga. His grandfather, Elisha 
Hoag, was brought from Dutchess County on horseback in his in- 
fancy. There were no roads in Easton then, only marked trees 
through the wilderness. Mr. Ives occupies part of the land he cleared 
up in South Easton, and known as Baker's Mountain. 



John Larmon, one of the best known men in Washington County, 
was born at Center Cambridge, May 5, 1829. He received his educa- 
tion at Cambridge Washington Academy and made the farm his 
home. While a young man he was elected Captain of a cavalry com- 
pany in the Washington County Regiment, State Militia, serving as 
Captain in 1847-8-9. 

He was nominated Town Clerk of the town of Cambridge when in 
his twentieth year, which he refused. The following year he was 
again nominated and elected, holding the office for three years. He 
has also held the office of Town Auditor for several years. 

At the age of twenty-one years he began farming for himself at 
Center Cambridge, and continued the business for several years at 
that place. In 1856 he purchased a farm near Eagle Bridge, and 
established at that station the speculative business of purchasing and 
selling grain, flax, wool and other farm productions. Mr. Larmon 
was the pioneer in this line of business in Eagle Bridge. 

In 1 86 1 he was elected Supervisor of the town of White Creek, and 
in the fall of 1873 he was elected sheriff of Washington County, tak- 
ing up his residence in Salem. After his term of office had expired, 
he resumed the business of wholesale dealer in farm produce at 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 255 

Salem, which he continued for five years. In the year 1882 he 
removed to Cambridge Village where he has since resided, and where 
he has continued to speculate in real estate and farm products. 

In 1854, September 12, John Larmon was married to Laura F. 
King, daughter of John King of Eagle Bridge. To them were born 
eight children, five of whom have passed from earth. The eldest son, 
John K. Larmon, was a graduate of the Albany Law School and was 
a successful lawyer at Cambridge. He died March 30, 1897, aged 
forty-one years. 

Those now living are Charles W. , of Salem, Mary Louise, (married 
Prof. E. E. Smith of Cambridge) and Frank P., a graduate of Rens- 
selaer Polytechnic Institute as civil engineer, class of 1900. 

Charles W., who is a wholesale produce dealer in Salem, was 
elected Supervisor of Salem three terms and was also Member of 
Assembly. 

John Larmon was a son of Alexander and Ruth (Corey) Larmon. 
Alexander Larmon was born in 1803, served as Captain in the old 
State Militia, was a prominent Methodist, a Whig in politics and a 
prominent and influential man. 

John Larmon's grandfather, Hugh Larmouth, came from Falkirk, 
Scotland, in 1772, and was a pioneer settler of the town of Cambridge. 
He settled on a farm of 200 acres, for which he paid twenty shillings 
per acre. Two of his sons served two years in the War of 1812. 

The lineal descendants of Hugh Larmouth have figured conspicu- 
ously in public and national affairs for three generations. 

Mrs. John Larmon's brother. Colonel William R. King, was a West 
Point graduate. Engineer Corps. He entered the service in 1863, 
during the Civil War, as Lieutenant. He was promoted for gallantry 
to Brevet Major in 1865, became Captain of Engineers in the same 
year, and Lieutenant-Colonel in 1888. 

He invented the " disappearing gun " and the largest magnet in the 
world, at Willetts Point, N. Y., where he was stationed for ten years. 
He died at Rock Island, 111., in 1898. 

Mrs. Larmon's great grandfather, John King, was a Captain of a 
company in Colonel Mark Hopkins' Regiment from July 1776 to August 
1777. Also marched with his company sixty miles to West Point, 
when an alarm took place, in June, 1780. This was just before Bene- 
dict Arnold's detection and flight. 

Mrs. Larmon traces her mother's (Mary Rice) genealogy back to 



256 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Thomas Dewey, who came from Sandwich, Kent, England, in 1638, 
to Dorchester, Mass. She is also a descendant in the eighth genera- 
tion of Edmund Rice, of Sudbury, Mass., who came from Barkham- 
stead, in Hertfordshire, England, in 1639. 

Her grandfather, Hercules Rice, was a Colonel in the War of 181 2. 
He was one of the first settlers of the town of White Creek. 



Gordon Wilson Meiklejohn was born in the town of Putnam, 
Washington County, N. Y., March 2, 1875, and was educated in the 
public schools of his native town and at the Albany Business College, 
Albany, N. Y. 

He is a son of Andrew G. and Elizabeth A. (Wilson) Meiklejohn. 
Both he and his father are representative men in the town of Putnam. 

Andrew Wilson, brother of Mrs. Andrew G. Meiklejohn, was a Cap- 
tain in the Union Army in the Civil War. He died in a hospital from 
a wound received in battle. 

George D. Meiklejohn, Assistant Secretary of War under McKinley, 
is a cousin of George W. Meiklejohn. 

On December 24, 1897, Gordon Wilson Meiklejohn married Eliza- 
beth E Moore, and they have one son, Clifford Gordon Meiklejohn. 

The Meiklejohn family is of Scotch descent and in all its branches 
and generations has produced able and estimable men who have been 
valued and prominent citizens in county, state and nation. 



Charles Lawrence Mason was born at Fort Ann, Washington 
County, N. Y., August 5, 1825,. and was educated at the common 
schools and the old Granville Academy. During the five years of his 
business life he was a merchant in Truthville. In 1855 he became 
principal of the Granville Academy and held this position until 1865, 
when he entered the general insurance business in w^hich he continued 
for thirty years, or up to 1895, and during this long period spent his 
time reading law, practicing law and attending to his insurance inter- 
ests. He has been largely connected with the Surrogate's Court. In 
1872 Mr. Mason bought a drug store for his sons which they conducted 
until it was burned down in 1802. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 257 

In politics Mr. Mason is a Republican and was the second School 
Commissioner elected in the county, and held this position from 1858 
to 1861. From 1868 to 1872 he was Justice of the Peace and from 
1855 to 1885 was very active in politics, acting as delegate to conven- 
tions, as committeeman, etc. 

Charles "Lawrence Mason married Frances M. Barker, daughter of 
Benjamin Barker and they had a family of four sons, three of' whom 
are deceased. The surviving son, Frank Mason, is a druggist in 
Chester, Mass. He married Anna Willett of North Granville and 
they have two daughters. 

His first wife died in 1870 and in 1872 he married Julia, daughter 
of Charles D. Barbour, and they have one son, Henry Beckwith 
Mason. He was born in 1874 and is editor of the Bulletin of Phar- 
macy, published in Detroit, Michigan. He is universally regarded as 
an authority in that line. 

He was in charge of a drug store when only sixteen years of age. 
He is a graduate of a College of Pharmacy and at his graduation 
received the medal awarded to the best thesis, although he was under 
twenty years of age at that time. On November 30, 189S, he married 
a daughter of Walter M. Thayer of Troy, warden of Dannemora 
Prison. 



Edward H. Moon is a native of the village of Fort Edward, and 
was educated at the Union School and the Fort Edward Institute. 

His first business experience was in the furniture and undertaking 
line, but in 1889 he took up photography, and is today the leader in 
this business in Fort Edward and the vicinity. In 1892 he went west, 
settled in South Dakota and studied photography there for t\to years, 
after which he came east and opened up his present studio in 1894. 
He does both inside and outside work with equal success and with 
artistic ability. 

Mr. Moon has been connected with the Satterlee Hose Company for 
over fifteen years, and is yet an active member, as well as an honorary 
one, in this company. 

Mr. Moon's parents were Alexander and Emily Moon. Alexander 
Moon was a native of Warren County, N. Y. His father was David 
Moon, a native of Scotland. 

[gg] 



258 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Charles Hughes McLoughlin was born in the town of Putnam, 
Washington County, N. Y., and was educated in the common schools 
of his native town and at the State Normal School at Castleton, Vt. 
He has always followed the occupation of farmer. 

On September 2, 1885, Charles H. McLoughlin married Jennie Pat- 
terson, and they have two children, namely: Louise and Celia. 

Mr. McLoughlin's parents were James and Isabella (Anderson) 
McLoughlin, both of whom lived to a good old age. His father was 
born on the farm where Charles Hughes McLoughlin now resides. 
Alexander McLoughlin, brother of Charles Hughes McLoughlin, was 
a soldier in the Civil War. 



George McMurray, the leading cigar manufacturer of Washington 
County, is a native of the town of Fort Edward, where he now resides 
and carries on business. He was educated in the schools of Fort 
Edward and at the Argyle Academy, and after his school days 
engaged in farming, which he pursued until twenty-five years of age 
when he embarked in the mercantile business in which he was 
engaged for the next seven years. He finally disposed of this busi- 
ness and for the succeeding twenty-five years was a commercial trav- 
eler. In 1 88 1 he established his cigar manufactory at Fort Edward, 
which he has since conducted successfully, carrying on the business 
which requires the employment of twelve cigarmakers and two trav- 
eling salesmen, the jobbing department of his business being quite 
extensive. 

In politics Mr. McMurray is a strong Republican, who takes a 
warm interest in the success of his party and its principles and has 
many times been delegate to county and congressional conventions. 
His one society is the Masonic, in which he has passed to the thirty- 
second degree, Scottish Rite. 

George McMurray married Mar)' McNiel and they have three sons, 
namely: George H. McMurray, M. D., of Glens Falls, John R. , who 
is associated in business with his father, and Alfred S. McMurray, a 
business man of Glens Falls. 

George McMurray's parents were Robert and Elizabeth (McFad- 
den) McMurray. Both the McFaddens and the McMurrays are old 
American families. George McMurray is a descendant of the old 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 259 

Clark family that established the Presbyterian Church in America, 
and which is one of the oldest families in the country. 

A prominent woman descended from the Clark family was Mrs. M. 
McLaughry who died in Deposit, December 25, 1898, and of whom 
one of her home papers had this to say : 

" She was a woman of high ideals and many cardinal virtues that 
quietly exemplified her in her life. Her desire for usefulness far ex- 
ceeded her means, but had she even been in easy circumstances her 
name would have figured in history as one of the famous women of 
the nineteenth century." 

She was a great-grand-daughter of Rev. Thomas Clark. D. D., who 
graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1751, but who came to 
America in 1756 to escape religious persecutions. (See history of 
Salem, this work.) He founded the Associate Reform Church, after- 
wards the United Presbyterian Church. 

She was a grand-daughter of Ebenezer Clark of Argyle, who helped 
to form the constitution of New York State and who served a term in 
Congress and'was one of the prominent early men of this state. Her 
mother was a descendant from a noted Huguenot family named Sav- 
age and one of her sisters married Schuyler Colfox, a prominent 
statesman. 



Robert C. Montgomery was born May 9, 1873, at Fort Edward, 
Washington County, N. Y., and received his education in the public 
schools. After leaving school he began the active business of life as 
a clerk, in which capacity he was engaged for some time, and from 
1892 to 1897 he was employed in the Glens Falls Paper Company as 
an engineer. He went into business on his own account in 1898, in 
partnership with Timothy F. Stoughton, under the firm name of 
Stoughton & Montgomery, druggists. This firm existed until Febru- 
ary, 1901, when Mr. Montgomery became sole proprietor of the busi- 
ness, which he still conducts. 

Mr. Montgomery is a prominent Mason, being a member of Fort 
Ed warn Lodge No. 267, F. & A. M., Fort Edward Chapter No. 171, 
R. A. M., and Washington Commandery No. ^3^ K. T., Saratoga. 
Springs. He is also a member of the Satterlee Hose Company. 

Mr. Montgomery's parents were Robert and Esther M. (Carswell) 



260 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Montgomery. Robert Montgomery was born in Greenwich, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., and died in 1893. 

Robert C. Montgomery is an enterprising, active and successful 
young business man, who takes an intelligent interest in the affairs 
of his town and county, and whose name ranks high in commercial 
circles. 



Charles H. McFarland was born in the town of Jackson, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., February 24, 1867. He was educated at the 
Greenwich Academy, from which he graduated in the year 1888, after 
which he took a position as clerk for Daniels & Fisher in their depart- 
ment store in Denver, Colorado, he being in the ladies' furnishing 
department. He returned to Greenwich in 1892 and embarked in his 
present business, that of dealer in ladies' furnishings, millinery and 
dressmaking, and has a trade which necessitates the employment of 
six people the year round. 

On December 21, 1892, Mr. McFarland married Belle Sears, daugh- 
ter of Thomas and Mary (Rogers) Sears of Greenwich, N. Y. 

Mr. McFarland is a member of the O. U. A. M., of Union Village 
Lodge, No. 253, I. O. O. F., and of Divirdahoo Encampment, No. 13. 

Mr. McFarland's parents were William and Anna (Woodworth) 
McFarland. He has two brothers, Robert McFarland and William 
McFarland. 

William McFarland was the son of Daniel McFarland, who was a 
farmer in the town of Jackson, and a soldier in the War of 18 12. 

The ancestry of the McFarland family is traced to the Scottish 
Highland clan MacFarlane, or Pharlan, the only one, with a single 
exception, whose descent is from the charters given the ancient Earls 
of Lennox, from whom the clan sprang, and who held possession of 
their original lands for over 600 years. The eighth Earl of Lennox 
dying without male issue, his daughter, the Dutchess of Murdock, 
held proprietorship. Upon her death, in 1395, three families claimed 
the earldom, the MacFarlanes claiming the right of male heirs. A 
struggle followed in which they were allied against all other claim- 
ants and became scattered. In 1488 the clans became separate and 
distinct under the Stuarts, the MacFarlanes being the principal one. 

At the time the clan was separated one part settled in the Lowlands 



BIOGRAPHICAL 261 

at Thorn Hill, and from there came Daniel McFarland in 1785, and 
settled in the town of Salem, Washington County. Daniel's son John 
came with him. In 1805 Daniel moved from Salem to Arg-yle, where 
he died at an advanced age. John lived in Cambridge for many 
years, but passed the last part of his life in Jackson, where he died in 
1847. His son Daniel, born in Cambridge in 1793, married Jane 
Shiland of the same town and their children were: John A., William, 
Robert, James and Margaret. Of these William was the father of 
Charles H. McFarland. 



Captain Seldon W. Mott was born in Sandy Hill, N. Y., Novem- 
ber 2, 1865, and was educated at Sandy Hill Union High School. 
After leaving school he learned the printer's trade and worked at the 
same until 1886. He then embarked in the jewelry business, learning 
the trade in all its branches, and conducted a jewelry store in Sandy 
Hill until April, 1898, when he went to the front in the Spanish- 
American War, and was mustered into the United States service 
May 2, 1898. 

Captain Mott enlisted in the National Guard August 29, 1887, in 
the Eighteenth Separate Company as a private, and was later pro- 
moted to Corporal, subsequently to a Sergeant. He was then elected 
to the rank of Second Lieutenant, and later to First Lieutenant, in 
which capacity he served with his company, (Company K, Second 
Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry) during the Spanish-Ameri- 
can War. He was elected Captain of Company K (Eighteenth Sepa- 
rate Company) Second Regiment, N. G. N. Y., July 14, 1899. Captain 
Mott held the office of Town Clerk when he was mustered into the 
United States service, and after being mustered out of the service 
he was re-elected to this office, which he still holds. He was Chief 
Engineer of the Fire Department in the years 1897 and 1898. He is 
a member of Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M. ; of Sandy Hill 
Chapter No. 149, R. A. M., and Cryptic Council No. 37, Saratoga 
Springs. He is also a member of Union Hose Company No. 3, S. 
H. F. D. 

Captain Mott organized the General James C. Rogers Camp No. 72, 
S. v., U. S. A., and was the first captain elected in this camp. 

On June i, 1893, Captain Mott married Martha, daughter of John 



262 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

G. and Cornelia (Hancock) Rich and they have two children, namely: 
Seldon Rich, born January 3, 1898, and Charlotte, born January 28, 
1900. Elizabeth, born August 10, 1895, died November 14, 1897. 

Captain Mott's parents were Edward and Frances A. (Tompkins) 
Mott. Edward W. Mott was a private of Company I, i6th New York 
Heavy Artillery, and served during the War of '61-65. Captain Mott's 
ancestors on his father's side came from France, and on his mother's 
side from Holland. 



Fred R. Nelson was born at Little Falls, N. Y., April 15, i860, 
and was educated in the schools of that city. He spent three years in 
the Marine service with headquarters in New York City, after which 
he put in about one year and a half in the oil country. He was next 
connected with the New York Central and West Shore Railroads for 
eight and one-half years as fireman and engineer, being engineer dur- 
ing the last seven years of his service. He next entered the employ 
of the Edison Electric Light Company, in New Jersey, and remained 
with them two years, after which he was six years with the Wool Ex- 
tract Company of Little Falls, N. Y. In 1893 he came to Fort Ed- 
ward to fill the position which he still occupies, that of engineer in 
the pulp mill. Mr. Nelson is a member of the National League of 
Stationary Engineers and also of the Maccabees and Red Men. 

In 1882 Mr. Nelson married Edith B. Myers and they have two 
children, namely: Fred C. and Florence E. Mr. Nelson's parents 
were Barnum H., and Fannie (Todd) Nelson. Barnum H. Nelson 
served as a Union soldier in the War of the Rebellion. His father 
was Henry G. Nelson. 



Franz E. Richter is a son of Frederick and Christliebe (Luckner) 
Richter and was born in Saxony, Germany, November 8, i860, and 
when he was able to work found his first employment on a farm and 
in the coal mines. In 1883 he came to the United States and settled 
in Grand Isle County, Vermont, and engaged in farming and the 
creamery business. In 1893 he removed to Whitehall and continued 
in the creamery business, which he has since conducted with great 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 263 

success. In March, 1896, Mr. Richter married Ellen, daughter of 
Alexander and Rebecca (Delano) Pearl. His wife died October 30, 
1899. 

Mr. Richter is a member of Phoenix Lodge No. 96, F. & A. M., 
and Whitehall Lodge No. 5, I. O. O. F., and also of the Y. M. C. A. 
and the Southern Church. 



Patrick Noon was born in County Galway, Ireland, the 14th day 
of February, 1836, and came to America in 1857. He first settled at 
Troy, but afterwards moved to Vermont, finally coming to Washing- 
ton County, N. Y. , where he has since followed farming, principally, 
although part of the time he has also been engaged in the lumber 
business. He has resided on his present farm twenty-six years. 

Mr. Noon takes an active interest in public affairs, and has held the 
important office of trustee. In 1864 he married Mary McGetrick, 
daughter of Barnett and Mary (Finnigan) McGetrick. They have 
seven children, namely : John, Kate, Helen, James, Thomas, Winifred 
and Nellie. Kate is the wife of James R. Lynch. 

Mr. Noon's parents were John and Katharine Noon. 



Elmer H. Palmer was born in the town of Northumberland, Sara- 
toga County, N. Y.. April 21, 1862, and was educated in the schools 
of his native town and at Warrensburgh, N. Y. 

His father was a farmer in Northumberland, which farm Mr. 
Palmer now owns, and which has been in the family one hundred and 
twenty-five years. 

Elmer H. Palmer came to Fort Edward in October, 1892, and estab- 
lished himself in the livery business, which, through his popularity as 
a man and his liberal business methods, has grown into a large and 
flourishing business. 

Mr. Palmer takes an active and intelligent interest in the public 
affairs of Fort Edward, and served as Trustee of the village in 1898. 
He is a member of Fort Edward Lodge No. 267, F. & A. M. ; Half- 
moon Lodge No. 492, I. O. O. F. ; the Red Men, the Royal Arcanum 
and the Satterlee Hose Company. 



264 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

On Jvme 13, 1883, Mr. Palmer married Maria Sisson, of Stillwater, 
and they have two children, Arthur H. and Cornelia Leon. 

Mr. Palmer's' parents were Jason F. and Laura S. (Hawley) Palmer. 
His grandfather was Nicholas Palmer, and it was he who settled upon 
the farm above referred to. 

The Hawley family is an old American one, which settled in Warren 
County before the Revolutionary War. 

In politics Mr. Palmer is a Republican, and his geniality and hon- 
orable business methods have made him highly popular wherever 
known. 



Clarence M. Root, one of the representative men of the town of 
Argyle, was born in the town of Hebron, Washington County, N. Y., 
May 27, 1865. He was educated in the public schools, and has fol- 
lowed the pursuits of farming all his life. He is a member of the Odd 
Fellows and is conductor in the Lodge. 

In politics Mr. Root has always been an ardent Republican, and is 
at present school trustee. 

On September 23, 1891, Mr. Root married Jane Spear, who was a 
graduate of the Sandy Hill Academy, class of 1885. They have one 
child, Harris S. Root. Mr. Root's parents were Delos and Sarah J. 
(Green) Root. Delos Root was born in Hebron, in the year 1823. 

Mr. Root is one of the most enterprising and progressive men in 
the town of Argyle, and takes a deep interest in church, educational, 
and, in fact, in all public affairs. 



Nelson Norton was born in Chesterfield, Essex County, N. Y., 
March 5, 1848. He was educated in the public schools of his native 
town and has always been engaged in the occupation of farming. His 
grandfather, Rufus Norton, was a Colonel in the Revolutionary War. 
His father's name was Milo Norton, and his mother's was Mary E. 
(Brown) Norton. 

Mr. Norton was married May 18, 1874, to Ophelia, daughter of 
James and Caroline (Nye) Ling. They have nine children, namely: 
William H., Alfred N., Ida E., Rufus A., Hattie O., John E., James 
G., Benjamin H. and Mary E. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 265 

Mr. Norton is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is 
a Republican in politics. He has never aspired to public office, but 
has been Commissioner of Highways one term. 



William A. Saunders was born in the town of Argyle, "Washington 
County, N. Y., July 25, 1849. He was born and reared on the farm 
and has always pursued the occupation of farming. 

On February 20, 1872, Mr. Saunders married Grace Bain, daughter 
of Hugh and Elizabeth (Kilmer) Bain. They have two children, 
James H. and Bessie. 

Mr. Saunders' father was William Saunders, a native of Vermont, 
who was born April 16. 181 8. His mother was Jane (Bain) Saunders, 
who was born in the town of Argyle, Washington County, N. Y., 
February 22, 1822. Her father was James Bain, who was a Captain 
in the American Army in the War of 181 2. 

Mr. Saunders is one of the representative farmers of Greenwich, 
and is a member of the United Presbyterian Church, and in politics is 
a Prohibitionist. 



Ellis Williams was born at Middle Granville, Washington County, 
N. Y., April 2, i860, and was educated in the district schools. He 
worked as a clerk for J. S. Warren, in the dry goods business at Gran- 
ville, for eighteen years, and succeeded to the business in 1893, 
widening out into a general merchandise trade, and now has the 
largest general store in Granville. He is also agent for the Williams 
Schmid Slate Company, whose quarries are located in Pawlet, Vt. 

In politics Mr. Williams is a Democrat, a firm believer in, and advo- 
cate of the principles of the founders of that party, and although the 
Democracy is numerically small in Washington County, he has been 
honored with different public offices. He has been a delegate to 
almost every County Convention since he began to take part in public 
affairs, and was Town Clerk in 1883. In 1884 he was elected Super- 
visor for his town, and received the appointment of Postmaster under 
President Cleveland. He is now one of the trustees of the village, to 
which office he was elected in 1900. 

[hh] 



266 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

In 1884 Mr. Williams married Edith Jones, daughter of Benjamin 
and Lucinda (Manning) Jones. 

His parents were Edward and Ann (Griffith) Williams, both of 
whom were natives of Wales. 



James Small was born in the town of Jackson, Washington County, 
N. Y., January 13, 1845, and was a son of Alexander and Elizabeth 
(Maxwell) Small. He received his early education in the district 
schools and afterwards took a course in the Cambridge Academy. 
After leaving the Academy he began farming on his own account on 
the farm where he now resides and which has been in the Small 
family for one hundred years. Mr. Small has taken quite an active 
part in politics and represented the town of Jackson on the Board of 
Supervisors for five years. He was also Assessor for a period of 
twelve years. He is a Republican in politics and is associated with 
the Presbyterian Church, of which he is an elder. 

On May 27, 1868, James Small married Sarah, daughter of Thomas 
and Henrietta Ann (Clapp) Edie. They have two children, Alfred 
M. and Hattie E. 

Major Stephen Clapp was of English descent and served in the War 
of the Revolution, during which he rose to the rank of Major. He 
married Catharine, daughter of Paul AVheeler. Major Clapp came 
from Massachusetts and settled three miles southwest of the village 
of Salem, where he bought a large tract of land and built his home 
and a number of mills, and the place was called Clapp's Mills. Major 
Stephen Clapp and his wife Catharine had two daughters and seven 
sons. Stephen married Jane Mack. They had eight children. 
Azubah married Levi Far well, Caroline D. married Hiram Green, 
Ambrose S. married Laura Raymond, Maria L. married Henry W. 
Hewitt, Hawley L. married Hulda D. Van Brunt, Jane A. married 
Silas Rice, Elizabeth married George Porter, Sarah married Henry 
Herrington. 

Constant, second son of Stephen, married Statira Bartlett. They 
had five children. Leonidas married Jane Chamberlain ; Alfred mar- 
ried Sarah Chamberlain; Louisa married William Baker; Statira 
married Henry Holcome; Amelia died in 1847. 

Otis, third son, married Harriet Monroe. They had six children. 
Monroe died in 1873; Benjamin died in 1873; Willoughby died in 
1873; Francis died young; Octavia and Catharine. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 267 

EphraimW., fourth son, married vSarah Rice. They had eight 
children. Clark, who married Ellen Knowles; George R., who mar- 
ried Lucy Hard; Harriet A., who married Thomas Edie. (They had 
two children, Sarah M., who married James Small, and George C, 
who married Harriet Paddon.) Martha T., who married Henry 
Minor; Mary C, who married Clement Minor; James W., who mar- 
ried Mary Evans; Sarah died young; William died young. 

Samuel, the fifth son of Stephen Clapp, married Lois Cleveland. 
They had five children. Catharine married Mr. Woodworth ; Elmira 
married Albert Billings ; Mary, Jiilia A. and Frances are dead. 

Leonard H., sixth son, married Sarah Stephens. They had two 
children, Samuel and Julia. Both are dead. 

Divella M., married Dorothy Acre. They had three children, 
Addie K., Maria and Otis C. 

Major Stephen Clapp's daughters were Debora, who married Mr. 
Otteral ; Abigail, who married William Hutchins. 

Major Clapp's sons settled on farms in the vicinity of Clapp's Mills, 
except one son, who settled in Adrian, Michigan. 

Major Clapp's forefathers came over with the Puritans, on the 
Mayflower. Ephraim W., fourth son of Major Clapp, served in the 
War of 1812-14, and was called Colonel Clapp. He was born July 4, 
1796, and died in October, 1876. 



Charles Cary. son of Patrick and Ann (Kelly) Cary, was born in 
Arlington, Bennington County, Vt , November i, 1840. He was 
educated in the public schools of his native town and lived at home, 
working on his father's farm until twenty-one years of age, when he 
began working by the month for others. In 1870 he moved into New 
York State, and on September 11, 1872, married Mary, daughter of 
James and Elizabeth Walsh. They have two children, namely: John, 
born June 11, 1873, and Elizabeth, born March 3, 1882. 

Mr. Cary has been engaged in the dairy business for about twenty- 
one years, and besides his extensive dair}' farming, has also been in 
the ice business. He first engaged in the ice business in company 
with William Reynolds, the firm being Cary & Reynolds, and the 
partnership lasting two years. Mr. Cary then formed a partnership 
with Dr. Gray and they carried on the business for eleven years. 



268 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

under the firm name of Gray & Gary. Then for two years Mr. Gary 
carried on the business alone, after which he was again joined by Mr. 
Reynolds, and the old firm of Gary & Reynolds was revived, again 
las'ting two years, when it was succeeded by the firm of Gary & Qua. 
This partnership continued four years and was succeeded by Gary & 
Kenyon, the present firm. 

Mr. Gary is a Democrat in politics, and was Trustee for four years 
and Excise Commissioner for three years. He owns a splendid farm 
of 227 acres, and is one of the representative men of his town. 



Randolph B. Woodruff was born in New York Gity on August 
24, 1849, and was educated at Peekskill Academy, from which he 
graduated in 1867, and at Charlier, where he remained two years, 
studying languages, after which he was engaged with a commission 
house for two years. He then went west and settled in San Fran- 
cisco, where he remained for twelve years, when he returned to New 
York State and settled in Greenwich, Washington Gounty, in 1883. 

In November, 1878, Randolph B. Woodruff married Mary Gifiin, 
daughter of Herman and Anna (Gorden) Giffan. 

Mr. Woodruff 's parents were Marcus P. and Mary (Brant) Woodruff. 
The ancestors of the Woodruff family came from England. 



John Edwards was born in Carnarvonshire, North Wales, April 10, 
1839, and was educated in the public schools of his native country and 
in the United States. He came to the United States in the spring of 
i860 and settled in Hampton, Washington Gounty, N. Y. There he 
embarked in the slate business, quarrying red slate directly west 
across the river from Poultney, Vt. The war put a stop to this enter- 
prise, and he went to Salem in 1864, where he worked in the quarry 
until 1 88 1. 

While living in Salem he was Supervisor of that town for two terms, 
namely: in 1878 and 1879. 

He married in Salem on March 17, 1868, Kate V. Egery, daughter 
of J. W. and Margaret (Boyd) Egery of Salem, N. Y. They have six 
children living, namely: Mrs. W. J. Edgar of South St. Paul, Minn., 
Charles, William, Margaret, George W. and John F. Edwards. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 269 

In 1 886 Mr. Edwards embarked in the slate business, his quarries 
being in Pawlet, Vt., but he kept his residence in Salem until iSgS, 
when he settled permanently in Granville. For a few years he was 
in partnership with Robert J. Williams, but this was dissolved in 
1895. Mr. Edwards subsequently formed the Edwards Slate Com- 
pany, which operates several quarries. 



John Skellv was born in Ireland, and was educated in the schools 
of his native country, and also in the district schools of America. His 
parents w^ere Patrick and Mary (Muloihill) Skelly. He has always 
followed the occupation of farming. Mr. Skelly is a Democrat in 
politics and a member of the Catholic Church. Mr. Skelly married 
Bridget Connors, daughter of Timothy and Catherine (Burke) Con- 
nors. They have two children, Michael and Mary, Mr. Skelly was 
formerly a member of the State Militia, and was connected with it at 
the time of Lincoln's assassination. 



William Lewis Hitchcock was born in Pittstown, N. Y., August 
27, 1858, his parents being William Edward and Lucinda (English) 
Hitchcock. 

The family moved to Cambridge while William L. was a boy. 
Here he was educated at the Putnam Institute and the Cambridge 
Washington Academy. 

In 1874 he secured a position as clerk in the gent's furnishing and 
clothing store of B. F. McNitt, with whom he remained until the 
latter's death in August, 1885. In October of that year he succeeded 
Mr. McNitt as proprietor of the store, and enjoys a large trade, both 
in the village and throughout the surrounding country. 

On September 11, 1889, William L. Hitchcock married Charlotte 
M. Sharpe, the only daughter of Justice Sharpe, of Cambridge. 

Mrs. Hitchcock died in 1899, leaving a family of four children, 
namely: Charlotte, Marian, Henry and Lois. 

Mr. Hitchcock has been a prosperous business man, and in 1899 he 
erected the handsome two story brick building on Main street, adjoin- 
ing the grounds of the First Presbyterian Church, which is quite an 
addition to the architecture of Cambridge. 



270 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

The Hitchcock family has been a prominent one in America. The 
family genealogy is published in a book containing about 700 pages. 
The progenitor of the family came from Wiltshire, England, in 1624. 



Charles Edward Tingue, the leading liveryman of Cambridge, 
was born at Cambridge, Washington County, N. Y., January 7, 1853, 
and was educated at Williamstown, Mass. 

On September i, 1870, Mr. Tingue embarked in the livery business, 
and has continued in this line up to the present time. 

He takes an active part in the public affairs of Cambridge, and has 
been President of the village for three successive years, namely. 1899, 
1900 and 1901. 

On August 23, 1870, Charles E. Tingue married Sarah Ella Gifford, 
and they have one daughter, Carlotta Tingue. Mr. Tingue's parents 
were Charles and Harriet (Boone) Tingue. 



v Ezra H. Snyder, County Clerk of Washington County, was born 

in the town of Argyle, this county, March 17, 1838, and was educated 
at the Argyle Academy, Argyle, N. Y. After leaving school he 
pursued the vocation of teaching for some years, and taught in 
Argyle, Adamsville, Fort Edward Center and Fort Miller. The chief 
occupation of his life has been that of farmer, in which he has been 
engaged for years He has long been prominent in the public affairs 
of the town and county, and was School Commissioner for the first 
district of Washington County; was representative of the town of 
Argyle on the Board of Supervisors for five 3'ears; was Deputy Col- 
lector of Internal Revenue nine years, and was elected County Clerk 
in November, 1900. He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity, 
and is affiliated with Argyle Lodge, F. & A. M. 

On May 28, 1862, Ezra H. Snyder married Caroline Augusta Potter. 
Their children are Clarence B., Jessie F., (deceased), Edith, wife of 
Warren H. Dennis; Edward J., Marian Ila, Anna, Caroline B. and 
Howard. 

Mr. Snyder's parents were John B. and Anna (Carl) Snyder. His 
paternal grandparents were Peter L. and Mary (Bush) Snyder. 
His maternal grandparents were Thomas and Mary (Thompson) Carl. 
His great grandfather, Lodewick Snyder, came from Holland, and 
was one of the early settlers of Columbia County, N. Y. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 271 

Patrick B. Daly was born at Smith's Basin, Washington County, 
N. Y., October 12, 1857, and was educated in the district schools of his 
native town. His parents were Bryant and Mary (McGinnis) Daly. 
Mr. Daly has always been a farmer, and every fall makes a large ship- 
ment of potatoes to New York City. 

On February 23, 1881, Patrick B. Daly married Isabella, daughter 
of William and Elizabeth (Parker) Henry, and they have two sons and 
two daughters. 

Mr. Daly is a member of the Knights of Columbus and of the 
Catholic Church. 



Robert Henry Watkixs. — It can be said to the credit and advan- 
tage of Cambridge that the village has some enterprising merchants, 
who conduct absolutely up to date stores, with metropolitan prices for 
their goods; of which the variety is great and the quality high. One 
of the best appointed and most completely stocked hardware stores in 
the county is located on West Main street, and is conducted by the 
subject of this sketch, Robert Henry Watkins, who has the reputation 
of being so watchful a business man that he invariably has the advan- 
tage of the market, and sells hardware from his counters at less than 
metropolitan prices. • 

Robert Henry Watkins was born August i, 1852, in the town of 
Jackson, Washington County, N. Y., and like many other Washington 
County boys, received his education at the district schools and the 
Cambridge Washington Academy. He began the active duties of his 
life in the capacity of clerk for S. B. Norton, in Granville, with whom 
he worked for six years, from 1871 to 1877. 

In 1877 he formed a partnership with Henry A. Qua, under the firm 
name of Qua & Watkins. They dealt in groceries, hats, caps, boots 
and shoes, and built up a large business. In 1887 their store and all 
its contents were destroyed by fire, but they immediately rebuilt and 
continued the business, until Mr. Watkins retired from the firm and 
purchased the large hardware busines^s of H. R. Eldredge & Co., next 
door to where he had been doing business for sev^enteen years. This 
business he has since conducted with the most pronounced success. 

In 1880 Mr. Watkins was united in marriage to Julia Livingston, 
the only daughter of Thomas Livingston, of Cambridge, N. Y., and 



272 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

they have a family of three children, namely: Thomas Livingston 
Watkins, born September i6, 1883; Frank Billings Watkins, born 
April 24, 1888; Elvira Elizabeth Watkins, born August 18, 1892. 

Mr. Watkins' parents were William and Selina Billings (Simpson) 
Watkins. William Watkins, born August 31, 18 18, died at East 
Salem, N. Y., December 13, 1898. Selina Billings Simpson, daughter 
of Robert Simpson, born Novemcer 15, 1821, died at East Salem, N. 
Y., September 7, 1897. 

Mr. Watkins is well known, not only as a successful, but as a thor- 
oughly honorable and upright business man. 



Lieutenant Harper N. Rogers, soldier and business man, is a 
son of Harper and Eliza (Reynolds) Rogers, and was born in the town 
of Moreau, Saratoga County, November 22, 1840. His first employ- 
ment, after his school days, was in the capacity of a clerk for William 
Tice, with whom he remained until the breaking out of the War of 
the Rebellion, when an ardent desire to serve his country led him to 
enlist in Company F, of the 2d New York Veteran Cavalry, in 1863. 
Shortly after joining Company F he was elected Second Lieutenant, 
but after a few months' service he was promoted to First Lieutenant 
of Company M, in the same regiment. In this capacity he served 
until the end of the war, participating in all the operations of his 
regiment with gallantry and distinction, and received his honorable 
discharge in December, 1865, at Talladega, Alabama. After receiv- 
ing his honorable discharge he entered the mercantile business again 
as a clerk, and so continued for some years. In 1880 he formed a 
copartnership with Mr. Carlton, at Sandy Hill, under the firm name 
of Rogers & Carlton, under which the business was conducted until 
1890, when the firm name was changed to Rogers & Company. They 
are, and have been for years, the leading furniture dealers and under- 
takers of Sandy Hill, where Mr. Rogers has resided since the spring 
of 1866. 

On December 20, 1870, Lieutenant Rogers married Sarah A., 
daughter of Asral M. Bond, of Oswego. 

Mr. Rogers has proved himself not only a valiant soldier and 
patriot, but also an enterprising and progressive business man, who 
takes an interest in the general welfare of the community, as well as 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 273 

in his own business. He has held the office of Town Clerk for a 
period of ten years, and is a member of W. M. Collin Post No. 587, 
G. A. R., of Sandy Hill Lodge No. 372, F. & A. M., and of the 
Presbyterian Church. 

His family has been identified with the history of Washington 
County for four generations, his paternal grandfather having been 
born in the county and pursued the occupation of farming in the town 
of Greenwich, and died in 1835. The family is of English extraction, 
and is one of the oldest in Washington County. Harper N. Rogers, 
father of the subject of this sketch, was born in the town of Green- 
wich, but moved to the adjoining town of Moreau, in Saratoga 
County, when a young man. He was noted for his sterling character, 
energy and success, but died in the middle of a successful career, and 
in the early prime of his life, being only thirty-six years of age at the 
time of his death, in 1847. Both he and his wife were Presbyterians. 
She was a native of the town of Moreau, and died in 1879, ^t sixty- 
five years of age. 



Rev. M. J. Griffith, LL. D., is a native of Wilmington, Del., and 
received his education, first at St. Mary's College, and finishing at St. 
John's University. He subsequently received the degree of LL. D. 
from St. John's College, Fordham. He came to Fort Edward in 
August, 1893, after a series of pastorates in different places, the last 
one before Fort Edward being at Valatie, N. Y. , where he was sta- 
tioned for twenty years. His parish there also included the church at 
Stuyvesant Falls, Stuyvesant Landing, Maiden Bridge and Castleton. 

He previously had charge of the church at Carthage, Jefferson 
County, N. Y., for four years, and the church at Deposit, Broome 
County, N. Y., for four years. The Deposit parish also included 
Hancock, French Settlement and Delhi, which were out missions. 
While in. charge of this parish Dr. Griffith built a very handsome 
church at Hancock. 

The church at Fort Edward has been unusually prosperous under 
his charge, and during the autumn of 1899 the church building was 
remodeled and refitted under his direction and supervision. 

Dr. Griffith is not only a very successful and popular pastor, but is 

fii] 



274 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

also a scholarly divine, and an author of note. His two principal 
works, "The Mystery Solved," and "The Cross of Christ," are of 
themselves sufficient to place him in the front rank as a thelogian, 
scholar and writer. The first of these, "The Mystery Solved," is a 
■profound explanation and interpretation of the Apocalypse, and the 
subject is one which none but a finished scholar and devout Christian 
would attack. The work has a peculiar value, because it explains, in 
an understandable way, a subject which is enshrouded with mystery 
to most minds. " The Cross of Christ" is a treatise on Christianity, 
forcibly arraying- all the tenets which uphold Christ's position as the 
Son of God and the Savior of Man. 



Benjamin Smith was born in the town of Holland, Orleans County, 
Vermont, April 8, 1849, and was educated at Stanstead Academy, in 
the Province of Quebec, and the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, in 
both of which institutions he carried off first prizes for oratorical 
ability. Mr. Smith is by profession a public school teacher and lec- 
turer, but is also interested in farming, and was engaged in the pro- 
duce business in 1890 and 1891, covering the territory from Coaticook, 
P. Q., to Jersey City. From 1892 to 1894 he was bookkeeper and 
traveling salesman for Close & Christie, at Mayfield, N. Y. In 1896 
he was purchasing agent for a New York produce firm. 

In politics Mr. Smith is a staunch Republican, and in 1892 was 
appointed by C. H. Hackett, Chairman of the Republican State 
League for Fulton and Hamilton Counties, to the position of Political 
Campaigner. Mr. Smith delivered thirty-eight addresses in these two 
counties. He is a member of Union Lodge No. 4, I. O. O. F., 
Lyndonville, Vt., and also of the I. O. of G. T. 

On April 13, 1874, Mr. Smith married Elizabeth Allen, youngest 
daughter of Norman Allen, of Hartford, N. Y., and they have a 
family of four children, namely: Carrie Belle, Frederick E., Jessie 
Edith and Carl Allen. Mr. Smith's parents were James and Ann 
(Abbott) Smith, both natives of the north of Ireland. They came to 
this country about 1830. and settled in Stanstead, P. Q., and after- 
wards removed to Holland, Vt., where they died at the respective 
ages of seventy-five and seventy-six years. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 275 

SiEGMUND Weinberg was born in Treysa, Province of Hesse Cassel, 
Germany, March 26, 1857. His father, Israel Weinberg, was a mer- 
chant; his mother was formerly Sarah Lion, of Mardorf ; her brother, 
Philip Lion, was a government counsel of Appeal Court. As a boy 
young Weinberg attended the public schools, and afterward private 
schools, up to the time he was sixteen years of age. He then became 
an apprentice in a dry goods store in Munden, Hanover, where, as 
was the custom, he had to pay to learn the clothing and dry goods 
business. He served eighteen months, doing the hardest kind of 
work around the store, with but little to eat, and suffering many hard- 
ships. He returned home ill, and as soon as convalescent, came to 
the United States to avoid the compulsory military life, for which he 
had no taste. He landed in New York with $150 in his pocket, on 
August 26, 1874. He sought and found an acquaintance he had 
known in Germ^any, and, giving him most of his money to take care 
of, he began life in this country as a peddler. He purchased $^^ 
worth of Yankee Notions, and with $7 for car fare and expenses, he 
went to Greenwich, N. Y., where he began as a pack peddler, from 
door to door, sending the money thus earned to his friend in New 
York, to keep for him and purchase goods as needed. In six months' 
time he found his friend had spent all the money he had sent to pur- 
chase goods, and as he had sold all his goods, and his friend had no 
money left with which to replenish his stock, he was forced to go to 
work piling wood. Writing to a friend in Kalamazoo, Mich., for 
credit, he soon secured another lot of goods, and in a few years' time 
he had saved about $500, had bought a horse and wagon, and was. 
again prosperous. But a serious illness, in 1878 to 1879, overtook 
him, and again his finances were crippled, but only for a short time, 
for, with characteristic energy, he was soon reaping good benefits 
from hard work. In a few years he got together a neat sum of money, 
and was looking about for a permanent place in 'which to settle and to 
become a merchant. In 1890 he bought of Mrs. Nathan Lewis, in 
Granville, N. Y., a piece of land on the west side, and adjoining the 
Mettowe River, on Main street, for which he paid $1950. cash. This 
is where the Thorn and other buildings are now located. Old resi- 
dents thought the investment foolish, but in less than four years he 
had sold less than one-eighth of the land for$2ooo. In 1891 he bought 
a residence on Quaker street, and also a tract of land lying west of 
this street, which was then assessed at $1200. He divided this land 



276 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

into 128 buildino; lots, and in three months had sold thirteen lots for 
$3300. He then began to build houses on some of the other lots, 
which found ready market. The property which was assessed at 
$1200, in 1891, is now, with the buildings thereon, assessed at more 
than $75,000. He built seven stores and about sixty houses, bought 
and sold real estate, and now owns one of the most valuable undevel- 
oped slate properties in the vicinity of Granville, N. Y., or the State 
of Vermont. 

In 1890 Mr. Weinberg married Miss Fanny Menges, of New York. 
They have three children, Irving, born January 13, 1892; Harry, 
born March 17, 1894, and Lawrence, born December 14, 1896. 

Mr. Weinberg's various interests and new ventures keephim "on 
the go" from early morn to late at night. He is a pleasant and affable 
gentleman, and has done more toward the building up of Granville 
than any other man. His buildings are not of the cheap tenement 
sort, but are fine residences and stores, being a credit to their locality. 



C. A. Rathbun was born in Whitehall, Washington County, N. Y., 
November 7, 1847, and received his education in the schools of his 
native place. He moved to the town of Fort Ann about 1870. He 
always pursued the occupation of farming in that town, and in the 
century year of 1900 he left this town and moved into Granville, 
where he now resides. He married Mary Bartholomew, of Whitehall, 
and they have one son, George Rathbun. 

Mr. Rathbun's parents were Anthony and Milandy Rathbun. 
Anthony Rathbun was a native of Whitehall, and died in 1891. His 
wife was born in Fort Ann. C. A. Rathbun has two brothers, 
William, who lives in Granville, and George, who resides in Whitehall. 



M. C. Tefft was born April 2, 1832, and on February 12, 1862, 
married Mary Clum, daughter of Martin and Sally (Worthington) 
Chmi. Their children are: Blanche C, born July 12, 1864, died 
March 15, 1883; Oscar W. Tefft, born vSeptember i, 1865; Nellie F., 
born August 26, 1869; Susie J., born February 10, 1872, died Septem- 
ber 8, 1878, and Grant J. Tefft, born October 4, 1874. M. C. Tefft is 
of the eighth generation, and his children of the ninth generation, 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 277 

from John Tefft, a contemporary of Roger Williams, who lived in 
Providence, R. I., and died in 1676. He appears to have been a 
native of Wales, and was in America as early as 1646. All the Teffts 
of Greenwich, and, indeed, all in Washington County, are descendants 
of the family of that name which resided in Kingston and Providence, 
R. I., in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The first authen- 
tic record of the family is in the will of William Tefft, of Boston, 
dated 1646, and in which he mentions his brother, John, of Ports- 
mouth, R. I. It was this John Tefft whose descendants, in the fourth 
and fifth generation, came to Greenwich and vicinity, and who were 
among the earliest settlers. Judge Nathan Tefft, of the fourth gen- 
eration, w^as the first to come from Rhode Island. He, with his two 
sons, Nathan and Stanton, settled, in 1776, on land still owned by his 
great grandson, Nathan Tefft, just below Middle Falls, on the Easton 
side of the Battenkill. 

William Tefft, a nephew of Judge Nathan Tefft, came from Rhode 
Island before, or during, the Revolutionary War, and his sons, David 
and William, took up land in what is now Greenwich. The father 
and another son, James, located on the Easton side of the Battenkill, 
about half a mile south of the present village of Greenwich. 

About 1785 Tabor Tefft, a nephew of William Tefft, came from 
Rhode Island and bought 400 acres of land in Greenwich, about four 
miles northeast of the village. There was only ten acres cleared, and 
a log house on the land, but in 1807 he built a large frame dwelling, 
which is today occupied by his grandson, Martin C. Tefft. 

These three Tefft families were the ancestors of all the Teffts in 
Washington County. 

Dr. Henry Sheldon, of Chicago, 111., who has compiled some genea- 
logical memoranda of the Tefft, and other allied families, says : 

"The name ''Tefft' is very ancient. In Armenia a man who buys 
and sells, is called the 'Tefftman,' and Tiftlis, or Tiflis, is one of the 
oldest market towns on the globe. 

" Into Armenia a large number of the chosen people were carried 
awaj' captive. The student of Anglo-Israel theories, finding the 
name ' Simeoni ' on one of the earliest maps of Gaul and Britain, 
infers that the tribe of Simeon may have escaped thither. One writer 
claims that 'Taafe,' the cognomen .of the principal river in Wales, has 
the same derivation as the name Teffe, or Tefft. The authr of Our 
Rwe quotes the British ditty, 'Teffe was a Welshman,' and also 



278 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

sundry notes, supposed to be historical, which suggest that if the 
royal seed of David did reach the holy isle, the Teffe were closely 
associated with the movement." 



Charles Stone was born in the town of Hebron, Washington 
County, N. Y., April 22, 1828. His parents were Charles and Amy 
L. (Northup) Stone. When he was quite young his parents moved 
from Hebron to Kingston, Ulster County, N. Y., where his early boy- 
hood was spent. When he was about thirteen years of age his family 
moved to Sandy Hill, Washington County, N. Y., where he lived 
until he became of age. This Was in the year 1849, and in that year 
he went to California, along with a party of his townsmen. The party 
laid their plans to start on a Friday, but he left on Thursday. The 
old superstition regarding the ill luck of beginning a venture on 
Friday may have had something to do with his choosing a different 
day, but it is more probable that it was his desire to have the most 
trivial things in his favor, which prompted his action. The result, 
however, was notable, for he was the only one of the party who made 
a success of the venture. He passed through the exciting life and 
times of the celebrated " Forty-niners " in California, but did not fol- 
low mining long, as he embarked in business, in which he became 
very successful, so that when he returned home, after ten years, he 
brought with him what was, in those days, considered a large fortune. 
During that time he made one visit home, in 1855, and married 
Abigail Seeley, of Johnston's Creek, Niagara County, N. Y., on Sep- 
tember 13th, of that year. She returned with him to Buena Vista, 
Cal., where he owned a large ranch. 

His journey west was made each time by way of Panama, and each 
trip was filled with exciting and perilous adventures. Walker's men 
held possession of the Isthmus when he made one trip; during another 
cholera was on ship board, the dead being thrown overboard daily. 
But good fortune seemed his, for he escaped all ills and succeeded in 
every way. He was an accomplished rider, performing all cowboy 
feats, and at one time living almost entirely on horseback, and making 
a ride of 100 miles daily, for two weeks. 

On his return to the east he purchased the home at Sandy Hill, 
which he kept as a summer residence until his death. Although well 



BIOGRAPHICAL 279 

off he contiuued in business and formed the firm of Stone & Cronkhite, 
lumber dealers, which was very successful. He also went into sheep 
raising-, and added paper mills and sawmills to his other interests, at 
various times. He was, for many years, a director of the Citizens 
National Bank, of Sandy Hill, and subsequently was President of the 
Peoples National Bank, of the same place. 

In all his operations he was uniformly successful, and yet he was 
not only unselfish, but always felt that he owed to others a portion of 
his siiccess. He was generous and philanthropic, wisely charitable, 
and always evincing a deep and kindl)'' interest in the deserving, and 
showing a warm regard for religious institutions and the public weal. 
Among the many donations made by him to Sandy Hill were the 
Soldiers" Monument and an iron fence for the cemetery, of which he 
was a trustee, and a contribution covering the larger part of the cost 
of the beautiful Baptist Church, one of the finest edifices north of 
Albany. He gave largely to churches of all denominations, his purse 
being open to aid in any deserving charity or progressive work. 

Mr. Stone and his wife were great travelers, traveling everywhere 
in our own country, as well as in Canada, Mexico and Cuba. They 
made two extensive trips in Europe, visiting Egypt as well. From 
every place of interest they brought home with them treasures and 
interestmg relics as souvenirs of their trips. 

Mr. Stone was a man of rare modesty, retiring, keeping always in 
the background; of extreme sensitiveness, frank, sympathetic, a 
strong nature, yet gentle and loving as a woman. He was an excel- 
lent judge of human nature; was always the courteous gentleman, 
always youthful and jolly in spirits, and was dearly loved by those 
who knew him intimately; yet not these alone, for men of the world 
respected, admired and loved him. Like all highly endowed men he 
had his pleasurable tastes and was a fine chess player, representing 
his club in matches. He was also very fond of horses, and always 
kept some fine driving animals for his own use. He was a member 
of the Union League Club, of New York City, and the New York 
Athletic Club. In politics he was an ardent Republican, and always 
took the long journey from New York to Sandy Hill to cast his vote. 
He died at his home in New York after a brief illness, resulting from 
the grippe, only seven months after the death of his wife. 

Mrs. Stone died in September, 1899. Her maiden name was 
Abigail Z. Seeley, her parents being Ebenezer and Amy (Harrington) 



280 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Seeley. She was educated at various local academies, and, in 1855, 
married Charles Stone. Of sturdy Revolutionary stock, she was a 
woman of strong patriotic feeling, and took much interest in local 
history. With a naturally gifted mind, extensive travel produced a 
broad culture. Of a generous and kindly disposition Mrs. Stone died 
beloved by all who knew her. 



Rev. Everett Reuben Sawyer, D. D., was born at the village of 
New London, N. H., October 10, 1838, and was prepared for college 
at Lowville Academy, Lewis County, N. Y. He took his university 
course at Union College, Schenectady, and was graduated from that 
institution in the class of i860. After leaving college he took up a 
course of theological studies to prepare himself for theniinistry, and 
was ordained as a Baptist minister at' Cooperstown, N. Y. His first 
church was in that village, where he remained for five years, during 
which time the church prospered exceedingly. His next pastorate 
was at Albion, Orleans County, N. Y. , where he remained two years. 
In 1870 he received and accepted a call from the Sandy Hill Baptist 
Church, where for thirty years he has labored with great success, and 
where today he is still carrying on the work of the church with 
unabated energy and zeal, and where he has long been very popular 
and miuch revered. 

The membership of this church has steadily grown under his pas- 
torate and now numbers three hundred and twenty-five communi- 
cants. The church building is one of the finest in Washington 
County, and was erected soon after Dr. Sawyer began his pastorate in 
vSandy Hill. The structure cost $50,000, and was entirely paid for 
years ago. The Sabbath School in connection with the church is also 
highly prosperous. 

Dr." Sawyer has al\va3's taken an active interest in everything per- 
taining to the advancement of .the church at large, and was for years 
Chairman of. the Missionary Committee of the Washington Union 
Baptist Association. His scholarly attainments naturally give him 
an interest in all branches of education, and his, association at Coopers- 
town with the beautifuLlake region of New York State, made doubly 
famous by J. Fennimore Cooper, has given him a peculiar interest in 
historical matters, and he is now a trustee of the. New York State 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 281 

Historical Association. In 1893 Rev. E. R. Sawyer received the de- 
g-ree of D.D. from Union College. 

In 1871 Dr. Sawyer married Sarah R. Lord, of Lewis County, N. 
Y. They have two children, W. L. Sawyer and J. E. Sawyer. 

W. L. Sawyer is a rising young lawyer of Sandy Hill, whose sketch 
will be found in the Bench and Bar chapter of this work. 

Dr. Sawyer's father, Rev. Reuben Sawyer, was also a Baptist min- 
ister, and was well known throughout New England. 



A. R. NoHLi:, the popular and efficient County Clerk of Warren 
County, was born at Weavertown, February 23, 1855, and received a 
liberal education in the public schools. 

His first business experience was in a drug store at Weavertown, 
from 18S3 until 1892. He was Town Clerk of the town of Johnsburgh 
for sixteen years, and in 1891 was elected County Clerk for Warren 
County, which position he has held uninterruptedly since that date. 

The efficiency and diplomacy with which he has managed his office 
and its affairs, have made him highly popular with all classes of citi- 
zens irrespective of politics. 

Mr. Noble married Belle Loveland, daughter of Daniel and Mary 
A. (Armstrong) Loveland, and they have two children, Katherine E. 
and Helene M. 



J. R. Collin, proprietor of the Collin Pharmacy, was born in the 
village of Sandy Hill, N. Y., October 6, 1870. He was educated in 
the public schools and the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, gradu- 
ating from the latter institution in the class of 1890. He then accepted 
a clerkship with the firm of Rogers & Carlton, where he remained 
two years, after which he went to Utica, N. Y., to take charge of the 
carpet department in the store of J. B. Wells, and remained in the 
employ of that house for four years. He then returned to Sandy Hill 
and formed a partnership with W. E. Congdon, in the grocery busi- 
ness, under the firm name of Collin & Company. This firm continued 
in business for a year and three months, when Mr. Collin purchased 
stock in the Standard Wall Paper Company, which interest he retained 

[jjj 



282 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

for four years. On July ro, 1899, he established his present drug 
business in Sandy Hill. 

On February 2, 1897, J. R. Collin married Jennie Durkee of 
Hartford. Mr. Collin's parents were William M. and Clara (Rogers) 
Collin. His grandfather, on his mother's side, was Hon. Charles 
Rogers, United States Senator. His grandmother was Susan Clark. 

Wm. M. Collin Post, at Sandy Hill, is so named in honor of Mr. 
Collin's father. 



Frkd WiM.iAM Hewitt was born at North Hebron, Washington 
Coimty, N. Y., May 16, 1869, and is a son of James W. and Emeline 
(Bullock) Hewitt. 

He was educated in the schools at North Hebron and the Troy Con- 
ference Academy at Poultney, Vt., of which he is a graduate. He 
entered the National Bank of Granville as bookkeeper in 1887, and 
was made teller in 1888. In 1891 he was promoted to cashier, which 
position he still holds, and he has also been one of the Directors of 
the Bank since 1894. 

He was one of the promotors and organizers of the Granville Tele- 
phone Company, which was organized in 1894. and re-organized into 
a stock company in 1899. He is now Treasurer and a Director of the 
Company. 

On November 24, 1892, Fred William Hewitt married Jennie M., 
daughter of John T. and Mary Jane (Hatch) Powell. Mrs. Hewitt is 
a graduate of Granville High school, also Troy Conference Academy, 
Poultney, Vt. 

In 1896 Mr. Hewitt was a delegate to the National Prohibition 
Convention and was a Presidential Elector. He has also allowed his 
name to be used as a candidate on the Prohibition ticket for county 
offices and has served on the County Committee many times. In 1900 
he was the candidate of the party for Treasurer of New York State. 
He was elected Village Treasurer on the Union ticket in 1893 and 
was re-elected successively in 1894, '95, '96 and '97. In 1894 he was 
elected trustee of the Troy Conference Academy and was made 
Treasurer of the Board of Trustees of that institution in 1896. 

M». Hewitt is a Mason, and is a member of Granville Lodge, No. 
55, F. & A. M., Granville. He is also a member of the Sons of the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 283 

Revolution and is Secretary and has been Treasurer of the Board of 
Stewards of the Methodist Church at Granville. 

Through George Denison, Jr., son of Capt. George Denison, a cele- 
brated Indian fighter, on his father's side, Mr. Hewitt traces his an- 
cestry back to the landing of the Mayflower. 

Capt. George Denison was a soldier under Cromwell, and fought 
at the battle of York or Marston Moor .in 1644. For further particu- 
lars of his (George Denison's) history see Judge Wheeler's "History 
of Stonington, Conn.," published in 1900; also, "Genealogy of the 
Denison Familv." 



Joseph E. Kinc, Ph. D., D.D., the subject of this sketch, was born 
in the town of Laurens. Otsego County, N. Y., in the year 1823, and 
was a son of the Rev. Elijah King. 

While quite young, his father met with a serious financial reverse, 
and at the age of twelve, Joseph was compelled to leave the village 
school and go to work. In the capacity of clerk and other employ- 
ments, he succeeded, young as he was, in earning enough money to 
assist in providing for his father in his declining years. Not only did 
he accomplish this, but by his admirable energy, was enabled to take 
a course of study in the Grand River Institute at Austinburgh, Ohio, 
and at Poultney, Vt. In 1844 he was admitted to the Sophomore 
Class at Wesleyan University and was graduated with high honor 
from that institution. 

During his college course he taught school during the winter season 
and worked in the harvest fields during the summer vacation. In 
1847 he was teacher of the Natural Sciences and Latin at Newbury 
Seminary, Vt., and later became principal of that institution, which, 
under his able administration was extremely successful, both from a 
scholastic and financial standpoint. He also preached during this 
period in many of the churches in the Connecticut Valley. In 1853 
he took charge of the Fort Plain Seminary, and during the year there 
his ability as an instructor won widespread attention. In 1854 he 
took charge of the Fort Edward Institute, where a great building had 
been constructed especially for his use. This institution opened with 
500 students, attracted largely by his name, and the school soon be- 
came famous all over the United States. In 1877 the school building 
was destroyed by fire, but it was rebuilt in 1881 with modern improve- 



284 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ments, and in 1899 it was further refitted and remodeled, since which 
date it has been used exclusively as a school for 3'oung ladies. Dr. 
King owns a controlling interest of the stock and is both the finan- 
cial and educational head of the institution. 

This school is the only one of its kind in Washington County, and 
it is a great credit, not only to Fort Edward, but to the county at 
large; students from almost every state in the Union are enrolled 
on its lists. 

While Dr. King has devoted much of his attention to educational 
matters and has long held the position of one of the formost Educators 
of the state, he has also been an incessant worker in the religious 
field. He was delegate to. the General Conference in 1856, 1864 and 
1886, and has never failed to respond to the yearly call of his annual 
conference since he became a member thereof. He has dedicated 
numerous churches and has constantly been before the public as 
preacher and lecturer. He has preached from over 200 pulpits of 
different denominations, and his lectures from the chapel stage of his 
own institute have been one of the special features in the educational 
training at his institution. He is earnest, versatile and eloquent, and 
is greatly beloved by his students. 

In 1867, and again in 1889, he visited Europe and saw and studied 
many of the institutions of the old country. 

Doctor King's degrees of A. B. and A. M. were received from his 
Alma Mater. The degree of D.D. was conferred upon him by Union 
College in 1862 and that of Ph.D. by the Regents of the University 
of the State of New York in 1873. He has long been conspicuous for 
his activity in the debates of the University convocations, and he has 
delivered poems and orations at the conferences of the Psi Upsilon 
Fraternity on many occasions, and is also a member of the Phi Beta 
Kappa, College Fraternity. For fifty years he has not been absent 
from a meeting of the trustees of Wesleyan University, except once, 
when he was in Europe. His interest in history is keen, and he is 
one of the trustees of the New York State Historical Association. 

The Fort Edward Institute, under his management, has prepared 
more than 150 students for college, has graduated 120 clergymen, of 
whom 30 are now Doctors of Divinity, 75 physicians, more than 100 
lawyers and legislators, of whom 30 are now judges and two have be- 
come United States Senators. In addition to these, many public men 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 285 

and cultured women, who have distinguished themselves in the 
various walks of life, have been graduated from this institution, which 
has a roll-call of several thousand names. 



J. Dkwavne Baker, a Lieutenant in a New York cavalry regiment 
in the Civil War, was a brother of Frederick L Baker of Fort Ann, 
and was born in that village in September 1839. He was educated 
in the Troy Conference Academy, Poultney, Vt., at the Fort Edward 
Institute and private schools. He commenced the study of law with 
Judge Potter at Whitehall, but when the war broke out enlisted as a 
private, had typhoid fever, and was discharged. He subsequently 
returned to the war as Lieutenant in a New York cavalry regiment 
and participated in the valley campaign in 1864 until he was again 
taken sick and resigned. 

After the war he was engaged in the ore business in Fort Ann. 

He died in 1885. 



G. K. Nichols was born in Gilsum, New Hampshire, June 13, 1849, 
and received his early education in the schools of Gilsum and Keene, 
N. H., and at Boston, Mass. 

Early in life he evinced a marked musical talent, which he culti-" 
vated, and speedily became an accomplished musician. He began his 
career as a musician in 1866 at Gilsum, N. H., and in 187 1 moved 
to Fort Edward, finally settling in Cambridge, N. Y., in 1876. 

In 1868 G. K. Nichols married Effie R. Guillow and they have a 
family of six children, namely: Bernice, wife of E. B. Cornell of 
Cambridge, N. Y., John K., musician, Newburyport, Mass., leader of 
the Cadet Band and Adelphi Orchestra, MarkF., musician in Doring's 
Band, Troy, N. Y., Jessie I., wife of Charles Kenyon of Jackson, N. 
Y.. Effiie Pearl, wife of Louis Coulter, Jackson. N. Y., and Luke H., 
musician, Cambridge, N. Y. 

Mr. Nichols' parents were Kendall and Mary (Isham) Nichols. 

In politics, Mr. Nichols is a Republican and a staunch supporter of 
his party. He is a member of the Odd Fellows Fraternity and of the 
Presbyterian Church. 



286 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

W. S. Coleman, principal of the Union school and Superintendent 
of the public schools of Fort Edward, is a native of Orleans County, 
N. Y. He is a graduate of the Brockport Normal school, the 
Albany Normal College and Mount Hope College, from which he re- 
ceived the degree of Ph. B. in 1899. He began teaching school in 
1887, and has occupied his present position since 1893. The Union 
school, which has an academic department, has attained a high status 
imder his able management and intelligent methods, and the schools 
of Fort Edward, of which he is Superintendent, do not suffer by com- 
parison with those of any other village in the state. The school 
attendance in Fort Edward averages about seven hundred and fifty, 
and eighteen teachers are employed. 

The first Kindergarten school in the coimty was opened in Fort 
Edward under Mr. Coleman in 1893. 

On December 1898 W. S. Coleman married Miss M. G. Gailey, 
daughter of John W. Gailey, of Fort Edward. 

Mr. Coleman's parents were Simon D. and Sarah A. (Bates) Cole- 
man. Simon D. Coleman was a native of Onondaga County and his 
wife of Wyoming County. Joshua Coleman (grandfather) was a 
native of Onondaga County and was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
War. 

Lemuel Cook, great grandfather of Professor Coleman, was the last 
survivor of the Revolutionary War. He was born at Northbury, 
Conn., September 10, 1759, enlisted in 1775 and fought in the patriot 
army during the entire war. He died in Orleans County, N. Y., 
May 20, 1865. 



Theodore F. Baker was born in the town of Granville, February 
I, 1869, and was educated in the .common schools of Hartford, N. Y. 
By occupation he is a cheese maker, and has followed this business 
for the past ten years, being identified with the old Hartford Factory 
for the past seven years. In the year 1899 he also embarked in the 
farming business and purchased the farm near the cheese factory. 

On April 5, 1893, Mr. Baker married Lillie E. Griswold of Fort 
Ann, N. Y., they have three children. 

Mr. Baker's parents were Dennis and Julia L. (Faxon) Baker, both 
of whom were born in the town of Hartford. 

Dennis Baker enlisted in Company E, 123d Regiment, New York 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 287 

State Volunteers, and served over three years in the War of the Re- 
bellion, after which he resided in Hartford and Fort Ann until his 
death, May 6, 1895, a^ed 53 years. His wife is still living- and resides 
at Sandy Hill, N. Y. 



Col. Eih;ene M. Baker was born in the town of Fort Ann, Wash- 
ington County, N. Y., July 7, 1837, and was a brother of Frederick 
I. Baker of that village. He was educated at the Troy Conference 
Academy at Poultney, Vt., and at West Point, where he was gradu- 
ated in the class of 1859. For a year after his graduation he was 
stationed at Carlyle Barracks, Pa., the rendezvous for cavalry before 
the war. He was then sent to California with his regiment, where he 
remained until 1862, when he came east with the ist Cavalry, then 
known as the "First Dragoons," of which he was First Lieutenant. 
His first service in the war was at the battle of Williamsburgh, after 
which he was promoted to Captain and breveted Colonel. He then 
served with the Army of the Potomac throughout the war and com- 
manded his regiment most of the time. He was Adjutant-General of 
the Cavalry Corps during the Appomatox campaign and was such a 
fine soldier that he was offered the Colonelcy of the 9th New York 
Cavalry by Governor Fenton, but declined. After the war he went with 
Sheridan to Texas and then out to California, Oregon and Idaho, and 
was with General Crook through his celebrated Indian campaign, re- 
maining in that country until 1869. He was then promoted to Major 
and transferred to the 2d Cavalry, stationed in Montana. 

When the trouble with the Piegan Indians began in 1873 Major 
Baker was ordered into Montana to report to the War Department if 
thing^s were as bad as reported. He found them even worse than 
they were said to be, so he was put in charge of the campaign against 
the Piegan Indians, and conducted the war against them with such 
success that they have ever since been good Indians. 

He was admittedly the best Indian fighter of his day, with, perhaps, 
the exception of General Crook. He was the junior field ofificer in 
the Wind River District, Department of the Platte, yet, when there 
was a threatened outbreak of the vSioux Indians, he was telegraphed 
for to take charge of an expedition against them, although he was at 
Camp Stanbough, six hundred miles from a railway, and the present 
General Merritt and other senior officers were in the same Depart- 



288 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

ment. In this expedition he commanded parts of three regiments, 
one thousand horse in all, and a battery of gatling guns, but at the 
appearance of his force the Indian uprising" subsided. 

He was thirty years in the service and was in the field almost the 
entire time, coming home only about six times in the thirty years. 

He died at Fort Walla Walla in 1884. 



Charles L. Duns:\iorf,, one of the prominent farmers of the town 
of Kingsbury, was born in the town of Queensbury, Warren County, 
N. Y., in May, 1865, but has resided in Kingsbury since 1867. He 
has always been engaged in the occupation of farming, and married 
Orpha Vaug-hn. His parents were David and Elspie (Johnson) Duns- 
more. David Dunsmore, his father, was born in Glasgow, Scotland, 
in 18 13, and came to this country in 1841. He located on a farm at 
Lake George, and there married Elspie Johnson in 1842. Elspie 
Johnson was born in Dumfreith, near Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1820. 
They resided at Lake George until 1867 when they settled in Kings- 
bury, on the present Dunsmore homestead. They had a family of nine 
children, seven sons and two daughters, five of whom are now living. 

David Dunsmore died in 1874, and his wife, Elspie (Johnson) Duns- 
more, died January 19, 1900. 



Zadock Harris, was born in Plainfield, Windham County, Conn., 
May 16, 1769, and was educated in the schools of his native place. 
On May 30, 1793, he married Abigail Dean at Plainfield. Their 
children were Fannie, wife of James Ingalsbee, Chester, Mira (who 
married first, Sylvanus Thomas, and after his death, Levi Ely), Leon- 
ard and Truman. 

Zadock Harris was a lineal descendant of Captain John Gallup who 
was killed in the "Great Swamp Fight" in the Pequot War. Decem- 
ber 9, 1676. His wife was in direct descent from Lieut. Thomas 
Tracey of Norwich, Conn., who emigrated to America in 1636. 

Zadock Harris and his wife were among the earliest settlers in East 
Hampton, Washington County, then called Log Village. They settled 
there in 1799. He was a practical and successful farmer and was the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 289 

inventor of the first iron plows, for which he took out letters patent 
in 1819, signed by James Monroe, President, and John Quincy 
Adams, Secretary of State. 

Zadock Harris died at East Hampton, N. Y., in 1854, and his wife 
died at the same place in i860. Truman, the youngest son, who suc- 
ceeded to the old homestead, was born in 1814, and having lived sixty- 
nine years on the same farm, died where he was born, in 1883, leaving 
an honorable record. 



HiBBARD Brothers — This firm was established in 1888 at Sandy 
Hill, N. Y., where they carried on the manufacture of paper makers' 
plugs until 1896. In 1894, however, they began the manufacture of 
wood cogs, which is still part of their product. In 1897, they began 
perfecting a gas or gasoline engine, which is now their principal 
manufacture. They have made a number of improvements, over- 
coming the defects of other gas engines, and have been particularly 
successful in perfecting the method of mixing the charge before tak- 
ing it into the cylinder, as well as overcoming the back explosions 
which are an objectionable feature on all other engines. In this, as 
well as in other important particulars, they have succeeded in making 
a perfect engine, and while attaining all this, have at the same 
time simplified the engine, doing away with all valves, gears or other 
mechanism on the outside of the machine. Only two adjustments are 
needed to operate the engine, both of which being marked, require- 
no special skill, and any one can start and run the engine with five 
minutes instructions. Experts pronounce the Hibbard engine the 
finest running engine on the market. 

The firm of Hibbard Brothers consists of Sumner, Warren and 
Charles Hibbard. They are all practical men and make all their own 
designs and patterns. 

The parents of Sumner and Warren Hibbard were Joseph and 
Phoebe Hibbard. Charles Hibbard's parents were Joseph and Emma 
Hibbard; Joseph Hibbard having married twice. 

Sumner Hibbard married Eva McKnight, Warren married Phoebe 
Hard and Charles married Margaret Knights. 

[kkj 



290 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Frederick Ingraham, the subject of this sketch was born in Center 
Cambridge, Washington County, N. Y., March i8, 1847. He received 
a thorough education at Claverick Academy and at Williams College, 
Williamstown, Mass. 

Shortly after the close of his college career, he engaged in business 
with his father in the manufacture of stoves, the firm name being A. 
Ingraham & Co. The business was located in Troy, N. Y. Fred- 
erick Ingraham was afterward engaged in business in Chicago and 
Minnesota for twenty years. 

In 1869 Mr. Ingraham was united in marriage to Elizabeth D. 
Merriam of Troy, N. Y., who died in August, 1897 They had three 
sons, one of whom, Malcolm R. Ingraham, survives. 

Mr. Ingraham has practically retired from business and lives in a 
fine, beautifully environed and roomy mansion at Center Cambridge. 

In politics he is a staunch Republican and takes an active interest in 
all public affairs in his part of the county. His judgment and advice 
are always sought after in matters of county, district and state political 
policies. 

The Ingraham family is an old American one and is of English 
origin. , 



A. D. Bump was born in the town of Jackson, Washington County, 
N. Y. , January 27, 1855, and was educated in District school No. 9, 
of his native town. He resided with his father until February 4, 
1880, when he removed to East Hartford and married Margaret M. 
Gilchrist Bump, widow of Warren S. Bump. They have one 
daughter, Ada E. Bump, born July 19, 1883. He followed the occu- 
pation of farming until November 14, 1891, when he commenced buy- 
ing potatoes at Smith's Basin, which business he continued for six 
years. On October 4, 1894, he began the manufacture of cider and 
vinegar. He bought the estate of Warren S. Bump, in partnership 
with A. W. Bump, August 8, 1898, and on April i, 1899, they estab- 
lished the Maple Grove Hotel, A. D. & A. W. Bump, proprietors, and 
have since conducted the same. 

A. D. Bump's father, Charles A. Bump, was born in Watertown, 
N. Y., January 2, 1824, and is now living in Jackson. His mother, 
Rebecca H. (Valentine) Bump, died May 25, 1872. He is one of a 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 291 

family of five children, all of whom are living. Besides A. D. Bump 
the others are Julia E., Nancy, Ida M. and Horace V. Bump. 

Mrs. Bump was educated at the Hartford Academy, and, like her 
husband, was one of a family of five children, the others being Hor- 
ace, Lucy, Archibald and James Henry. 

A. W. Bump is a son of Warren S. and Margaret M. Bump, and 
was born June 15, 1875. 

The Bump family is an old American one and has long been identi- 
fied with Washington County. 



Aubrey Edgerton Meyer, son of Isaiah and Ida (Adolphus) Meyer, 
was born in New York City, February 4, 1868. He received his early 
education in the Charlier Institute, New York City, which he at- 
tended until fifteen years of age. He was then sent to Europe and 
took a college course in Zurich, Switzerland. After graduating from 
that institution he entered the Royal Weaver's school at Crefeld, 
Germany, in order to learn the art of silk weaving. He remained 
two years in the weaver's school and then went to Lyons, France, and 
after a further short course of study returned home in 1886. In that 
year he entered the service of Plegram & Meyer of Patterson, N. J., 
his father being the junior member of that firm. He remained with 
that house until his father's death which occurred in August, 1888, 
when he began the organization of the present company in Whitehall, 
of which he is President. This concern is known as the Champlain 
Silk Mill. The factory is a large and substantial stone and brick 
structure two hundred and fifty feet in dimensions and six stories 
high and has a capacity of one hundred and fifty thousand pounds 
per year They employ upwards of five hundred skilled operatives, 
and manufacture spun silk yarn. They keep three traveling sales- 
men on the road and have an extensive trade throughout the United 
States knd Canada. The business was established in 1890 and was 
incorporated in 1891 under the laws of the State of New York. 

The entire operations of the business are under the strict super- 
vision of Mr. Meyer, who is not only a shrewd business man, but 
possesses executive ability of an unusually high order, and under his 
able management the trade of the concern has steadily increased until 
today the Champlain Silk Mills have a standing second to none in the 
world. 



292 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Mr. Meyer is also public-spirited to a high degree and takes a deep 
interest in the welfare of the community, state and country, as well 
as in his own immediate business, and is universally regarded as one 
of the most enterprising and valuable citizens of Washington County. 

On November 17, 1892, Mr. Meyer married Alice, daughter of 
Martin and Malvina (Rosenbeck) Weil. They have a family of two 
children, namely: Aubrey Edgerton, Jr., born June 14, 1894, and 
Dorothy T., born June 15, 1895. 

Mr. Meyer's father was a native of Bavaria, Germany, and came to 
America in 1830. He settled in Louisiana, where he engaged in the 
general merchandise business until i860, when he removed to New 
York City, where he engaged in the real estate business, finally branch- 
ing out in the silk business as a partner in the firm of Plegram & 
Meyer of Patterson, N. J. 



Joseph B. Stone of Salem, was born in 1847 in the town of Water- 
ford, Saratoga County, New York, and educated in the public schools 
of that place. His parents, William A. and Olive (Combs) Stone, 
were natives of Massachusetts and both of English descent. He 
learned the carpenters' trade before he reached the age of twenty and 
followed that occupation both in Waferford and in Middle Granville, 
for about seven years. In 1869, one year after moving to Middle 
Granville, he accepted a position in the hotel of H. S. Clark, now of 
Cambridge, and remained in his employ for four years. With the 
revival of trade and the great increase of building which the opening 
of new slate quaries occasioned at Granville in 1873, Mr. Stone re- 
turned to his original occupation and engaged actively in building 
and contracting for about six years. In 1879 he leased the Fairvale 
Hotel at North Granville and conducted it for two years, after which 
he became connected with the management of the North Granville 
Military Academy, where he remained until the autumn of 1887. 
He spent the winter of 1887-88 in California and on his return to the 
east bought the Central House at Salem, N. Y., which he altered 
and improved, and where he now continues in prosperous business. 
He has been a Republican from his earliest voting days; he is a mem- 
ber of Salem Lodge No. 369, F. & A. M., and a Director of the 
People's National Bank of Salem. He married, in 1876, Miss Eliza- 
beth Holland of Poultney, Vt. , and has one child, Marie. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 293 

Benjamin L. Ward was born in Northampton, Mass., in 1837. He 
was educated in the public schools in Northampton, and at the early 
age of fourteen he learned the cigar-making trade and worked at this 
until the war broke out when he was one of the first of those to res- 
pond to the call of his country. He enlisted in 1861 in Company F, 
Fifth Iowa Cavalry, and received his honorable discharge in June, 
1862. He immediately re-enlisted with the 79th Indiana, with which 
he served three years. He was for two years detailed at Department 
Headquarters of the Cumberland as messenger, from February, 1863, 
to the close of the war. Mr. Ward was in several hard fought bat- 
tles. He was wounded in the head at Stone River. He was at Mis- 
sionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain and Perryville. He has achieved 
the reputation of a brave soldier and a splendid marksman. After 
the war he resumed his trade in Indiana, and in 1867 settled in Cam- 
bridge Village, where he followed his trade up to the Harrison 
Administration, when his friends, recognizing his long devotion to 
the Republican party, his ability and loyalty to his country, secured 
his appointment as Postmaster at Cambridge. He was again made 
Postmaster under William McKinley, which office he still retains. 

He is a member of Post John McKean, G. A. R., of which he has 
been Commander. He held the office of Village Trustee for seven 
years and was serving his second term as President of the Village 
when he resigned to accept the Postmastership. For six years he has 
been a member of the Board of Education, which office he still holds. 

In 1873 he married Anna McMurray. Three children were born to 
them, B. Frances, John G. and Irene M. 

The father of the subject of this sketch was John G. Ward, whose 
wife was vSylvia Moulton. The Wards were among the pioneers of 
Massachusetts, and settled at Sudbury in 1639. 

Kieley Ward, a great grandfather, was wounded at the Battle of 
Bunker Hill. He served in his uncle's regiment. All of the Wards 
and Moultons were patriots. 



Jesse Gikson was born in the town of Hartford, Washington 
County, N. Y., June 24, 1874, and was e(5ucated in the public schools 
of Hebron, N. Y., and at the Albany Business College. He was 
reared on a farm and followed that occupation until the spring of 



294 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

1894, when he embarked in the mercantile business in South Hart- 
ford, which he still continues. 

Mr. Gibson is prominent in the Republican party in the town of 
Hartford, and has served on committees and in various ways assisted 
in furthering the interests and securing- the success of his party in his 
town and county. 

On December 7, 1898, Mr. Gibson married Millie L. Hall, daughter 
of Solomon Hall. Mr. Gibson's parents were James and Jane (Lundy) 
Gibson. James Gibson was born in the north of Ireland and came to 
this country and settled in the town of Hebron, N. Y., about the year 
1840, where he resided until his death, which occurred in 1894. His 
wife, Jane Gibson, is a native of Washington County, and resides in 
Hartford, N. Y. 



George Yout was born in Ballston Spa, Saratoga County N. Y., 
September 22, 1856, and is the son of Dow and Lucinda (Betts) Yout. 
He was educated in the district schools and, outside of some time, 
during which he was occupied as lock tender on the canal and a period 
during which he was engaged at the printer's trade, he has been a 
farmer, which is his present occupation. 

George Yout married Cora Brate, daughter of William and Laura 
Brate. They have one son. Charles Yout. Mr. Yout takes an intelli- 
gent interest in the public affairs of his town, and has held the office 
of Poormaster as well as minor town offices. 



Arthur Walsh, was born in Ireland January 15, 1837, and was a 
son of John and Jane (Todd) Walsh. Arthur Walsh came to the 
United States at the age of twenty and located at Bennington, Vt. , 
where he learned the trade of machinist, which business he has made 
his life pursuit. He worked in Bennington for about eighteen years, 
when he moved to Cambridge, N. Y., where he has since resided, 
and where for seven years he has conducted a foundry. 

Mr. Walsh possesses inventive genius as well as mechanical skill, 
and has patented a governor for a water wheel, which has proved very 
successful, and from which he receives a liberal royalty. 

On February i, 1862, Arthur Walsh married Margaret Bowers. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 295 

David Harvey King, the subject of this sketch, was born July 14, 
1835, in the town of Milford, Otsego County, N. Y., and is of Revolu- 
tionary stock on both father's and mother's side. His grand-father, 
Omstead, served on the staff of General Washington. His father^ 
Elijah King, moved his family in 1844 to Cambridge, Washington 
County, N. Y., where on April 14, 1847, he died leaving a widow 
with seven children. 

At the age of thirteen David H. entered the employ of a general mer- 
chant in Cambridge village, where he remained until the spring of 
1850, when he went to Newbury, Vt., and entered the employ of F. & 
H. Keyes, in the same business, but attended school each fall and 
winter at the Seminary in that village. In 1854-55 he attended 
school at Fort Plain and Fort Edward. In October, 1855, he took 
Mr. Greeley's advice and went west, (minus the $300) where he re- 
mained two years, or until September, 1857, when he came east on a 
vacation, but never returned, as he yielded to the solicitations of 
mother and wife and went into the drug trade with his brother the M. 
D., in which he remained until the breaking out of the Rebellion, when 
on April 17, 1861, he enlisted and went to the front in Co. "B" 22d 
Regiment N. Y. S. Vol. Infantry. 

In June, 1861, Mr. King was appointed Sergeant and Hospital 
Steward on the Non-Commissioned Staff of the Colonel, and in June 
1863, was mustered out of the United States service with the regi- 
ment, but having acquired a taste for war and military life he re- 
entered the service in the 93d Regiment N. Y. Vet. Vol. Infantry, 
and served until the close of the war. He was with his command at 
Appomattox, April 9, 1865, and assisted in issuing rations to the 
hungry rebels. 

He holds five commissions from the Governor of the Empire State 
— Second and First Lieutenant, First Lieutenant and Regimental 
Quartermaster, Captain and Major. 

Since the close of the four years of war he has held many positions 
of trust, honor or profit, conferred upon him by the government and 
his fellow citizens. His surviving comrades of the 2 2d and 93d Regi- 
ments by unanimous vote made him historian of the Regiments. He 
has completed the History of the 93d Regiment, and a volume of 620 
pages is now in print and for sale, from which he is deriving only 
moral dividends. He is a thorough and painstaking member of the 
G. A. R. ; he was the founder and organizer of C. E. Mills Post 491, 



296 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

and was for several years its Commander. He has also organized and 
mustered several other posts; has held the office of Aid-de-Camp on 
the staff of several Department Commanders and Commanders-in- 
Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic. He has always been ready 
and willing to answer the call of needy or sick comrades and neigh- 
bors. 

He became an Odd Fellow in 1858 and a Mason in i860. He has 
held by vote of his brethren every office in the Lodge, and has served 
two terms as District Deputy Grand Master of the 13th Masonic Dis- 
trict of New York. 

When able to be about he is always to be found at the meetings of 
his Post and Lodge, and practices Fraternity, Charity and Loyalty. 



Edwin Morton King, M. D., was born December 13, i860, in Fort 
Edward, N. Y., attended public school, and graduated at Fort Edward 
Collegiate Institute, studied medicine and surgery at the Medical 
College in Burlington, Vt. , graduating with honor, and was the vale- 
dictorian of his class; took a post-graduate course in Albany Medical 
College and began the practice of his profession, but his health fail- 
ing he engaged with Parke, Davis & Co., manufacturing chemists of 
Detroit, Mich., and was located at Baltimore, Md., at which place he 
died January 17, 1893, just as he had entered upon the threshold of a 
useful life. 

He left one son, E. Tallmadge King. 



George J. Wehb, son of William M. and Amanda M. (Barrett) 
Webb, was born in Waterloo, Seneca County, N. Y., in 1861. In 
1868 his parents moved to Cambridge, Washington County, N. Y., 
and he received his early education at the public schools in that place. 
In 1876 he accepted a position in a grocery store in Hudson, Mich., 
where he remained three years. Upon his return to the east he estab- 
lished a general merchandise store in Salem, N. Y., which he con- 
ducted for four yeafs. He then entered the hardware business, 
accepting a position in a wholesale hardware house, and again moving 
west where he had charge of the agencies of his firm in Iowa and 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 297 

Dakota. Soon after his return east in 1888 he went into partnership 
with his brother-in-law, F. L. Weir, and established a meat and 
grocery business in Salem, N. Y., which he conducted until 1895, 
when he was appointed Postmaster of Salem, which position he held 
until 1899. 

He is Secretary of the Blue Lodge and Chapter of the F. & A. M., 
Lodg-e 396, and a member of the I. O. O. F., Lodge No. 45. He was 
married in 1887 to Emma J. Maxam and has four children, all sons, 
Harold, Leo, Fred and Earl. 



Hon. William R. Hobbie. — The subject of this biography was born 
in Waldo County, Me., December 22, 1848. He received his prelim- 
inary education at the Cleveland High School, graduating in 1864, and 
then took a course in Amherst College, from which he was graduated 
in the class of 1869. After graduating he accepted the management 
of the A. J. Johnson publications, he having charge of the business 
for the states of New York, Massachusetts and Vermont. He con- 
tinued in this position until 1872, when he organized the Phccnix 
Paper Company, with Mills at Battenville. This company was a part- 
nership between Mr. Hobbie and H. L. Morey, which continued until 
1896. In 1897 the company was incorporated under the name of The 
Phoenix Paper Company. The product at first was straw paper, but 
the manufacture is now entirely tissue paper The officers of the 
company are William R. Hobbie, President, and H. L. Morey, Secre- 
tary and Treasurer. 

Mr. Hobbie is well known throughout the state as an ardent Repub- 
lican, and he has always been active in furthering the interests of 
his party. In 1889 and 1890 he was Supervisor for the town of Green- 
wich, and in 1892 he was elected Member of Assembly for Washing- 
ton County. He was re-elected in 1893 and also represented the 
county again in 1896 and 1897. In 1894 he was Chairman of the Com- 
mittee on Insurance; in 1896 was Chairman of the Committee on 
State Prisons, and in 1897 was Chairman of the Fish ahd Game Com- 
mittee. 

Mr. Hobbie takes an active part in church affairs and is a warden 
of St. Paul's Episcopal church at Greenwich and has held the office 

[llj 



298 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

for thirteen years. He is also a Trustee of the Methodist church at 
Battenville. He is a member of the Order of American Mechanics, 
Philip Schuyler Council, No. ii, and is a prominent figure in this 
great and intelligent association of men. 

On June 2, 1880, William R. Hobbie married Phrebe, daughter of 
Roswell P. and Caroline (Smith) Walsh of Battenville. Roswell P. 
Walsh was a Lieutenant in the War of the Rebellion and received his 
death wound at the battle of Drury's Bluff. 

Mr. Hobble's family consists of three children, namely: Phoebe 
Elizabeth, born July 12, 1881 ; Edward Walsh, born March 15, 1884, 
and Marion, born August 23, 1888. 

The first representative of the Hobbie family in this country was 
William Plobbie, who was born in 1634. He settled in Boston and 
was one of the first merchants there, and was a warden in the first 
Episcopal church erected in Boston. (King's Chapel.) 

William R. Hobbie'sfather was William Henry Hobbie, a prominent 
educator of Maine. He went to Cleveland in i860, and was engaged 
there as a teacher for a number of years, afterwards becoming asso- 
ciated with A. J. Johnson in the publication of his standard works. 
His wife (mother of Hon. William R. Hobbie) was Sarah Chase 
Gilkey. 

In business, politics and socially, Mr. Hobbie stands high through 
a long career of usefulness, success, and the maintenance of an exalted 
standard of integrity and honor 



George Holley was born in the town of Kingsbury, Washington 
County, N. Y., August 18, 1840, and has pursued the occupation of 
farming all his life. He takes an active interest in the affairs of his 
town, and has bebn School Trustee and Pathmaster. He is also a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal church. 

On February 22, 1866, Mr. Holley married Mary E. Vaughn, and 
they have a family of two children, namely: Lillian, wife of Fred 
Bancrof, and Daniel G. , who married Lavanchie Fisher. 

Mr. Holley's parents were Daniel and Arasliah (Vaughn) Holley. 
His ancestors on his father's side settled in the town of Hartford, and 
his ancestors on his mother's side came from Rhode Island and settled 
in the town of Kingsbury. 




HON. G. R. MARTINE, M. D. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 299 

Hon. Godfrey R. Martine, M. D., Glens Falls, N. Y.— James J. 
Martine, father of the subject of the following- sketch, removed from 
Troy, to Glens Falls, Warren County, N. Y., in the spring of 1845, 
and shortly after to the adjoining town of Caldwell in said county, 
where he purchased a tract of 400 acres of land. He was well known 
as a man of scholarly attainments in his day and generation ; lived a 
long and busy life, passing away in 1888 at the ripe old age of eighty- 
nine years. His son, the Hon. Godfrey R. Martine, was born in 
Troy, N. Y., in 1837. and accompanied his father to Warren County 
when eight years of age. He received his first scholastic training in 
Troy, N. Y., afterward in the Warrensburgh Academy, where, among 
his instructors, was Gen. O. E. Babcock, who in later years became 
General Grant's secretary. He pursued the classical course under the 
direction of Rev. R. C. Clapp of Chester, who was then considered 
one of the most competent teachers of the classics in Northern New 
York. 

He then took a course in the State Normal School at Albany, N. Y., 
receiving a teacher's state certificate. For some time afterward he 
was engaged in teaching, during a portion of that time was, for sev- 
eral terms, principal of Warrensburgh Academy. He had, however, 
a natural taste for the study of medecine, and entering the medical 
department of the University of Vermont, graduated from that insti- 
tution in 1862. He at once entered into active practice at Warrens- 
burgh, and later at Johnsburgh, where he practiced his profession until 
he removed to Glens Falls in 1882. In 1869 Dr. Martine was united 
in marriage to Miss Mary E. Woodward Macdonald, a lady of marked 
intellectuality and refinement, the only surviving daughter of the late 
Charles Macdonald of Warrensburgh, and a niece of the late Prime 
Minister of Canada, Sir John A. Macdonald, G. C. B., D. C. L., 
L.L. U. They have one son, Byron A. Martine, born in Glens Falls, 
N. Y., in 1883. 

In politics Dr. Martine has been a pronounced Democrat, believing 
that this party more nearly represented the true interests of the great 
mass of the people. From 1866 to 1870 he represented Johnsburgh in 
the Board of Supervisors, and in 1879 was elected a member of the 
New York Assembly from a strong Republican county. In the halls 
of legislation he was, as elsewhere, a gentleman of pronounced 
ability, honesty of purpose and enthusiastic in his support of what- 
ever he considered best for his constituents. Among other beneficial 



300 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

bills, he secured the passage of the bridge bill, appropriating $5,000 
for the building of the iron bridge which now spans the Hudson 
River at the village of North Creek. Dr. Martine has done much to 
develop the business interests of Northern New York. He built 
with his partner, Randolph McNutt, now of Buffalo, N. Y., the first 
pulp mill erected in Warren County, placing therefrom, upon the 
market, the first wood pulp manufactured in Warren County, many 
car loads of which were shipped to Europe. He has done much to 
develop the beautiful resorts of the Adirondack region by opening- 
one of the most popular gateways into that wilderness. In 1874 he 
erected the " Blue Mountain Lake House " located on the shores of the 
romantic lake of that name, and at the base of the lofty Blue Mountain, 
thirty miles from the terminus of the Adirondack railroad. This 
house, with its outlying cottages, furnishing accommodations for about 
300 guests, is visited by hundreds of tourists who declare this 
resort one of the most charming in all that region. In 1878 he estab- 
lished the "Martine Drug Store" at North Creek, which was man- 
aged by his brother, Byron A. Martine, tip to the time of his death in 
1881. The store is still in a prosperous condition, a veritable boon of 
convenience to a widespread section of country. Dr. Martine is a 
fellow of the New York State Medical Association, and is one of its 
original members. He has served several terms as President of the 
Warren County Medical Society, also of the late Tri-County Medical 
Society. He is a member of the American Medical Association, and 
was a delegate to the World's Medical Congress; and is now President 
of the Warren County Medical Society. For five years he was Secre- 
tary of the United States Board of Pension Examiners. In conjunc- 
tion with Dr. Lemon Thomson he, in 1885, established the Glens 
Falls Hospital. In various other ways he has been an incessant 
worker in every measure tending to elevate the medical profession. 
He has served as Coroner, Health Officer, and is now one of the 
Trustees of the Crandall Free Library, and of the Glens Falls 
Academy; is one of the originators and is now President of the Glens 
Falls Lyceum. He is a life member of the American Peace Society, 
also a member of the New York State Historical Association, and for 
fifty years has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
Warren County has been the theatre of his medical career with the 
exception of a short time when he served as a Volunteer Surgeon dur- 
ing the War of the Rebellion, in which he lost five brothers. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 301 

Doctor Martine is a constant reader and close student of general 
literature. He has an extensive library, embracing the choicest of 
the world's literary productions, especially enriched by works of deep 
eruditional interests and freshened by the very latest collections in 
scientific research. He has been a frequent lecturer on different 
topics, and when a public library for Glens Falls was first agitated he 
gave an interesting lecture in the old Opera House, donating his fee 
therefor of $50, as a library nucleus. His writings have been mostly 
confined to medical subjects and one of his productions entitled "A 
New Plan of Treatment for Pneumonia" is of especial value, and 
appears in the " Transactions of the New York State Medical Associa- 
tion " for 1888, and it may truthfully be said while there is an abund- 
ance of medical literature throughout the world on the treatment of 
pneumonia, this article of Dr. Martine's is the only one which outlines 
a cure for this formidable disease. Dr. Martine has been one of the 
most liberal and public spirited citizens of Warren Coimty, and it is 
stated has earned and given away to the worthy poor a large fortune. 

He is a gentleman of great energy and throws into every under- 
taking with which he is connected all his fruitful resources. Possess- 
ing kindly, genial manners, and never more happy than when aid- 
ing others, he stands a unique figure among the noblest sons of War- 
ren County. 

His career is an illustrious example of a life well lived, and his 
reputation as a useful man and skillful physician will long continue in 
the affectionate memory of all who know him. 



Hotel Cunningham — One of the finest hotel buildings in northern 
New York, and a structure that is a great addition to the appearance 
of vSandy Hill, is the Hotel Cunningham. This building was erected 
on the site of the old Coffee House, and was opened in June, 1899. 
It fronts directly upon the handsome little park in the center of the 
village and is centrally located in the business district of Fort Edward, 
Sandy Hill and Glens Falls. 

Since its opening day this fine hotel has been conducted by P^dward 
Reynolds, a hotel man of long experience, who has made this house 
one of the most popular in this part of the state. The house is 
capable of accommodating a large number of guests, its rooms are 
bright and airy, and its dining room is celebrated all over the state. 



302 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Gen. John Williams — In addition to the length)'' sketch of the 
career of this notable man, which begins on page 268, Part I., of this 
work, we here append his family history. He was twice married. 
His first wife was Mrs. Susanna Turner. There children were: 
Susan, wife of Rev. Alexander Proudfit, who was for forty years 
pastor of the Associate Reformed, now the United Presbyterian 
Church in Salem; Elizabeth, who married Ebenezer Proudfit; Maria, 
who married Hon. Anthony I. Blanchard, and John Williams, who 
was appointed by Gov. Morgan Lewis. 2d Lieutenant of the First 
Squadron, Third Division, State Cavalry, and by Gov. De Witt Clin- 
ton, Colonel of the 7th Regiment of State Cavalry. He was subse- 
quently Aide-de-Camp to the Brigadier General of the i6th Brigade 
of Infantry. 

General Williams' second wife was Mrs. Mary Townley, of New 
York City, who died without issue. 

Colonel John Williams, his son, married Ann Wray and had two 
children: John, who married Harriet B. Martin, and Mary, who mar- 
ried Rev. Dr. George W. Bethune. 

The children of the last John Williams are: John M. Williams, who 
married Frances Schriver, Miss Harriet M. Williams and Miss Fanny 
H. Williams. These, with Miss Marion, daughter of John M. Wil- 
liams, reside in the colonial mansion, the "Williams Home," in 
Salem. 

Prof. John Francis Williams, Ph. D., was the youngest male 
descendent of Gen. John Williams. He had achieved great distinc- 
tion in the scientific world, and his untimely death, November 9, 
1 89 1, was universally lamented. 

The lineal descendants of General Williams number about three 
hundred, comprising families of honorable station and many who 
have become prominent in social and professional ranks. 



Delbert R. Haskins, the leading druggist of Granville, was born 
at Dorset, Rutland County, Vt., July 20, 1857, and was educated at 
the Burr & Burton Seminary, Manchester, Vt. He broke off with his 
studies and took up the printer's trade for a time, but afterwards 
returned to the seminary and completed his education. He then took 
a position as clerk in a drug store at Manchester, and there remained 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 3o3 

until 1 88 1, when he removed to Granville and engajjed in the drug 
business for himself, and made it his permanent home. 

Mr. Haskins, on December i, 1887, married Cora E., daughter of 
Jessie and Lucinda (Woodard) Sherman. They have a family of three 
children, namely: Jesse, Henry Gray and Esther Haskins. 

In addition to his drug business, which is complete in every depart- 
ment, Mr. Haskins is also interested in farming. In 1888 he built a 
fine residence in Granville, which he subsequently traded for a farm 
of 107 acres in South Granville, where he carries on a fine dairy busi- 
ness, along with general farming. He is an enterprising and progres- 
sive business man, always ready to support any undei'taking looking 
to the advancement of his town or county, and was one of the pro- 
moters of the Granville Telephone Company at Granville, which he 
operated for five years. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. 



Captain Julius H. Higley — The subject of this sketch, who is 
one of the best known and highly respected citizens of Washington 
County, was born at Fort Ann, N. Y., March 19, 1838, and was edu- 
cated at select schools, the State Normal School at Albany and the 
Greenwich Academy. Immediately after graduating he began teach- 
ing school and was so engaged until the breaking out of the War of 
the Rebellion when his patriotism led him to war in the Union cause. 
He enlisted in Company E, 123d Regiment, New York Volunteer In- 
fantry on August 22, 1862. He entered the ranks as a private soldier 
and faithfully served his country in that capacity until July 7, 1864, 
when he was appointed First Lieutenant in Company A, 109th U. S. 
C. T. Infantry, having been previously examined by a military 
board. He was again ordered before a military board, and on May 
31, 1865, was made Captain of Company A, 109th U. S. C. T., and 
served with the 123d Regiment at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, 
and then went west with his regiment. After the defeat of the Union 
army at Chickamauga, he was with Sherman until June 27, 1864, 
when he was ordered to Louisville to join the 109th Regiment, which 
was being organized there. He commanded the advance of part of 
the line at Petersburg, and was near the place where General A. P. 



304 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

Hill was killed. At Gettysburg he was among- those ordered in front 
of the Federal line to skirmish with Confederate sharpshooters. He 
was present at Lee's surrender, and after the surrender of Johnson he 
went with his regiment to Texas. He remained there from June, 
1865, to March, 1866, when the regiment was ordered to Louisville. 
He was mustered out March 15, 1866. He passed his examination 
for a Captaincy in the regular army and passed high, but never 
received the appointment. During his service as a soldier, nearly 
four years, he was never absent from duty and although he passed 
through many battles was never wounded. 

After the war Captain Higley engaged in farming and teaching. 
He has taught almost continuouslj' for the last fifteen years. 

On December 29, 1866, Captain Higley married Lydia M. Duel, 
daughter of Morgan and Lydia M. (Day) Duel and they have a family 
of three children living, namely: Albert M.. born February 9, 1868, 
Brodie G., born October 6, 1872, and Mabel D., born August 26, 1876. 

Captain Higley is a member of Post Norman F. Wier No. 453, G. 
A. R., at Hartford, N. Y., and always acts as Chaplain upon the death 
of any of his comrades, and also of Herschel Lodge No. 508, F. & 
A. M., and of the Methodist church. He is a Colonel on the G. A. R. 
staff of the state of New York, and in politics is a Republican. He 
cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln and has never wavered in his 
allegiance to the Republican party for the past forty years. He is 
also active in public affairs and has held town offices and is largely 
interested in agriculture and the manufacture of cheese. 

The founder and progenitor of the Higley family in America was 
Captain John Higley, who came from the county of Surry, England, 
and settled in Windsor, Conn., in 1666. He was a direct descendant 
of Sir Thomas Moore. 

Captain John Higle}^ had eleven children, one of whom, Nathaniel, 
had a son Dudley, whose son, Charles D. Higley, was the father of 
Captain Julius H. Higley. 

On his mother's side Captain Higley is a descendant from Obediah 
Denio. His mother's maiden name was Eunice Denio. 

Captain Noah Day was born in 1760. His son Hosea had a daugh- 
ter, Lydia M. Day, who married Morgan Duel. Their daughter, 
Lydia M. Duel, is Captain Higley's wife. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 



305 



Charles Edwin Mills, the subject of this sketch, was born in Fort 
Edward on the 21st day of May, 1833. He learned the carpenters- 
trade under his father, Peter Mills. 

When Fort Sumter was fired upon he enlisted in defense of the 
Union and the Flag, and gave his life for the country, falling in the 
second Battle of Bull Run with his face to the foe. He enlisted in 
Co. "B" 22d Regiment, N. Y. Vol. Infantry, and was a model ser- 
geant, always caring for the men, looking for their comfort and wel- 
fare. The G. A. R. Post in Fort Edward is named for him. 



Charles H. vStickney was a good citizen and a Christian soldier, 
always to be found where duty called; he gave his life for the cause, 
falling in the battle of South Mountain and was buried near a church 
at the foot of the mountain, after the war his remains were brought 
home and given a Masonic burial. 



William H. Hoysradt enlisted in May, 1861, and was mustered 
into the United States service June 6, as fourth sergeant in Co. " B,' 
was with the regiment in all the engagements. After the second 
Battle of Bull Run he was promoted to Lieutenant, and came home 
with the company, and lived many years to enjoy as best he could the 
fruits of his labors and hardships. 



Robert. E. McCov enlisted and was instrumental in raising Com- 
pany "B" of the 22d Regiment N. Y. State Vol. Infantry, and was 
by vote of the men of the company, made its first Captain. He was 
a thorough military man and had the best company in the regiment. 
He gave his life for the cause in the second Battle of Bull Run, and 
was buried on the field near where he fell. 

[m mj 



306 WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY. 

James W. McCoy entered the service in Co. "B," 226. Reg'iment, 
as 2d Lieutenant, was promoted to Captajn after the death of his 
brother, Robert, and ist Lieutenant Duncan Lendrum. Going 
through all the engagements with the regiment, and retiring with 
the remnant of his company in July, 1863, when the grateful citizens 
of Fort Edward gave him and the other survivors a hearty welcome. 

Was killed b}^ the falling of a derrick. 



Edwin P. Ray, a prmter by trade, entered the United States service 
in Co. "B," 226. Regiment N. Y. State Vol., serving his country 
faithfully, until in the second Battle of Bull Run, he lost his left eye 
and was subsequently discharged on surgeon's certificate. 



Ed\vin L. Bragg entered the service in Co. "B," 22d Regiment, 
served his country in the ranks for two long years and came home 
with the small remnant of those who were the original number of the 
regiment. 



INDEX. 



Abeel, David, 292 

Abercrombie, Gen., 74 

commands expedition against Crown 

Point, 93 
is repulsed at Ticonderoga. 99 
is replaced by Gen. Amherst, 108 

Ackland, Lady, at battle of Saratoga, 256 

Adams, John. 165 

Adirondack Indians, Traditions of, 13 

Aix-la-Chapclle, Treaty of, 37 

Albany County, 

contents of. in 1683, i 

sub-division and boundaries in 1772, 

I 
Cambridge and Easton taken from, 
and annexed to Washington, 3 

Albany, Town of, 

contained in Albany county, i 
military road from, to Canada, 27 

Algonquin Indians 

treaty of. with Champlain, 12 

Allen, Ethan 

reward offered for capture of, 128 
Ticonderoga surrenders to, 138 
taken prisoner and sent to England, 

143 

treason of, 293 
Allen, Cornelius 

sketch of. 562 
Allen, Hon. Cornelius Lansing 

sketch of. 512 
Allen. John, and family nuirdered, 183 
Amherst. Gen. 

commands expedition against Louis- 
burg, 93 

commands English forces in Amer- 
ica, 98 

captures Ticonderoga and Crown 
Point, 108 
Ann. Queen, war of, 12-32 

Ft. Ann named in honor of, 29 
Argyle, Town of 

named after Duke of Argyle, 414 

location and settlement, 415 

supervisors, 416 

churches, 418 
Arnold, Hon. A. D. 

sketch of. 568 



Arnold, Benedict 

captures St. Johns, 140 
at siege of Quebec, 143 
in naval battle on Lake Champlain, 

149 
at battle of Saratoga, 246 
Ashton, Thomas, organizes second 
Methodist Episcopal church in Amer- 
ica, 332 
Assembly, Colonial 

divides Albany county into three 

parts, I 
provides election for Charlotte coun- 
ty, 2 
vacates title to part of Washington 

county, 1 1 
declares hostilities in French war, 32 
petitions London Board of Trade, 

128 
adourns forever, 141 
Assembly, New England Colonial 

condemns disregard of treaty of 
Aix-la-Chapelle, 40 
Aubrey, Thomas. 178 
Ayres, Robert, 193 

Baker. Elisha D. 

publishes the Sandy Hill Herald, 495 
Baker. F. I. 

sketch of, 565 
Baker, Dr. 

introduces smallpox iiUo Gates' 
army, 145 
Ballston 

Carleton's expedition against, 284 
Bancroft, B. F., 403 

Barnes, and family nuirdered, 184 

Bartholomew. Alanson Douglas 

sketch of, S50 
Bartlett, Dr. 

gives an account of McCrea tragedy, 
191 
Bascom, Robert O. 

edits and publishes Norton's Or- 
derly Book, 150 

sketch of, 563 



308 



INDEX. 



Batten Creek 

a boundary of Albany county, 2 

contained in Washington county, 6 

name of derived, 105 
Bateaux 

construction, etc., see note, 76 
Baum, Col. 

sent against Bennington, 214 

mortally wounded, 216 
Bellomont, Earl of 

sends John Schuyler to Frontenac, 11 

treachery of, 21 
Betts, Royal C. 

sketch of, 563 
Bingham, William W. 

publishes The Salem Sun, 493 
Black Creek 

contained in Washington county, 7 
Blair, Bernard, 

sketch of, 508 
Blake, Robert 

anecdote related to Dr. Clark by, 129 
Blanchard, H. T. 

founds the Whitehall Chronicle, 499 
Bleecker, Jan Janse, 11 
Bloody Pond, fight at, 62 
Blanchard, Col. Joshua 

commands New Hampshire troops, 
47 

stationed at Ft. Edward, 61 
Boies, David A. 

sketch of, 509 
Boies, Joseph 

sketch of, 510 
Bouquet, Col., 81 
Braddock, Gen. Edward 

sent to America, 44 

plan of campaign of, 45 

defeat and death of, 46 
Bradstreet. Col. 

rebuilds bridges for Abercrombie's 
expedition, 99 
Brant, Joseph 

with Jackson's expedition against 
Crown Point, 57 

describes battle of Bloody Pond, 63 
Bratt, Frederick A. 

sketch of, 559 
Breyman, Col. 

with Burgoyne's expedition, 156 

is killed, 247 
Brunswicker Dragoons, 214 
Brown. John 

publishes the Sandy Hill Herald. 496 
Burby, Augustus Alonzo 

sketch of, 561 



Burgoyne, Gen. 

plans campaign of 1777, 154 

succeeds Carleton, 155 

forces under, 156 

occupies Crown Point, 157 

at Schuylerville, 232 

defeated at Freeman's farm, 236 

surrender of, 269 

career of, 273 
Bullard, Daniel A. 

British excavations on farm of,236 
Burke, Edmund 

denounces Indian atrocities, 184-198 

Cambridge, Town of 

annexed to Washington county, 
3, 298, 446 

patentees and settlers in, 447 

supervisors of, 448 
Cambridge, village of 

location and settlement of, indus- 
tries of, 449 

centennial celebration of, 450 

educational institutions, 452 

churches of, 453 
Cameron, Maj. Duncan, 344 
Campbell, Maj. Duncan 

killed at Ticonderoga, 102 

sketch of, 103 
Campbell, Capt. John 

at battle of Ticonderoga, 100 
Campbell, Capt. Laughton 

visits Washington county 

brings colonists to Washington 
county, 41 

duplicity of Governor of New York 
towards, 42 

tribute to, 43 
Canada 

militarv road to Albany from, 27 
Canoes, Indian mode of building, 25 
Carleton, Sir Guy 

repulsed at Longqueil, 142 

pursues Gen. Thomas, 144 

treatment of prisoners by, 147 

defeats Arnold on Champlain, 149 

is relieved by Burgoyne, 155 

second invasion of, 283 
Carrol, Charles, diary of, 315 
Cartier ascends the St. Lawrence river, 13 
Carver, Jonathan 

describes massacre at Ft. William- 
Henry, 87 
Carver, Peter. Journal of. 358 
Chambley, village of 

destroyed bv Mohawk Indians, 19 
Champlain canal, 346 








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